Meta to pay $18 billion to settle U.S. teen safety lawsuit

Meta has agreed to an approximately $18 billion settlement to resolve a lawsuit brought by a coalition of 29 U.S. state attorneys general. The lawsuit alleged that the company intentionally designed addictive and harmful social media platforms to maximize profit at the expense of younger users.

The settlement introduces several new protections for users under the age of 18. These include a cumulative daily usage limit of two hours across Facebook and Instagram, a default block on applications between midnight and 6 a.m., and muted notifications during school hours from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Additionally, teen users will have the option to use a non-algorithmic feed as their default experience.

The agreement follows intense scrutiny regarding teen safety, including testimony from Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri. The new restrictions are intended to mitigate the harms of social media overuse, though they are expected to impact user engagement and marketing reach among younger demographics.