Meta Platforms has agreed to pay up to $16.68 billion to settle a landmark lawsuit brought by 29 U.S. states over allegations that Facebook and Instagram were designed to keep children and teenagers addicted to social media.

The settlement, announced on Wednesday, brings an end to one of the most significant legal battles yet over the impact of social media on young people.

The 29 states accused Meta of designing features that encouraged children and teenagers to spend excessive amounts of time on its platforms.
The company was also accused of misleading the public about the potential dangers of its products and improperly collecting the personal data of children.

Meta denied wrongdoing as part of the agreement. The case had gone to trial in a federal court in California, with prosecutors arguing that Meta’s business practices contributed to a wider youth mental health crisis.

The lawsuit was expected to be one of the biggest tests yet of whether major social media companies could be held legally responsible for alleged harm caused by their platforms.

As part of the settlement, Meta has agreed to introduce major changes for users under the age of 18. The changes include a default two-hour daily time limit for young users, restrictions on platform use during late-night hours, limits on notifications during school hours and additional prompts encouraging teenagers to take breaks from prolonged use.

Teen users could also face further restrictions on certain platform features, including visible like counts and some beauty or cosmetic filters.
The settlement money is expected to support youth online safety and mental health initiatives across the United States.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta described the agreement as a major step toward making social media safer for children, while Meta said the settlement represented an important step and called for broader industry-wide standards for protecting young users.

The agreement is also significant because it comes amid growing global concern about the effects of social media on children and teenagers.
Meta is not the only technology company facing legal scrutiny.

Other major platforms, including TikTok, YouTube and Snapchat, are also facing lawsuits and increasing pressure over allegations that their products contribute to excessive screen time, addiction and mental health problems among young people.

For Meta, however, the financial settlement and the planned safety reforms mark one of the biggest consequences yet from the growing backlash against the design of social media platforms.

The agreement could also become a turning point in how governments regulate social media companies and how technology firms design products for younger users.

While Meta has denied the allegations, the settlement sends a strong message to the wider technology industry. The concerns about children’s safety and the addictive design of digital platforms are increasingly becoming legal, financial and public policy issues that companies can no longer ignore.