Meta Settlement Would Put Youth Limits on Social Platforms
Meta could pay as much as $17.1 billion and implement daily time limits, nighttime cut-offs and parental controls under a settlement with US attorneys general.
A settlement over child social media addiction claims could cost Meta as much as $17.1 billion, The National reported, while also requiring new limits on how younger users can use Facebook and Instagram.
The proposed deal covers litigation brought by 47 states, Washington and other US territories.
Court filings set out claims that Meta failed to disclose how younger users could become vulnerable to addiction on its platforms and failed to implement adequate safeguards against online predators and other harmful users.
Meta denies the allegations.
The settlement would still bind the company to product changes for younger users, including daily time limits, fewer notifications and nighttime cut-offs that stop several of its platforms from functioning during restricted hours.
Meta framed the agreement as a bipartisan deal with attorneys general from states, territories and the District of Columbia.
In a company statement, Meta urged TikTok and YouTube to adopt the same standard for teen accounts.
The legal pressure has reached Meta executives in court.
Instagram chief Adam Mosseri testified that he had not known staff received legal guidance on screening internal material tied to young-user safety.
District of Columbia Attorney General Brian Schwalb described the agreement in much harsher terms, accusing Meta of endangering children for profit and calling it the largest Big Tech settlement to date.
The settlement arrives as governments move from criticism of social platforms toward age-based restrictions and design rules.
Australia has limited social media use among young people, Britain is preparing a sub-16 restriction for major platforms from next year, and the UAE has said children under 15 will not be allowed to use social media.
In the US, broad federal action has not advanced, leaving states to pursue their own cases and rules.
The Meta settlement would become the closest US equivalent to a nationwide change in how younger users experience major social platforms.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta, whose state helped lead the litigation, warned other technology companies to change practices before facing similar court action.
The agreement now turns the child-safety dispute into enforceable product obligations, with school-hour notification limits, daily usage caps and new parental tools built into the standard Meta has promised to implement.
