Summary created by Smart Answers AI
In summary:
- Tech Advisor reports that a Los Angeles court has ordered Meta and Google to pay $6 million in fines for designing addictive social media apps without user warnings.
- The lawsuit was filed by a 20-year-old woman who suffered from depression and anxiety due to Instagram and YouTube addiction, with Meta responsible for $4.2 million of the total fine.
- This landmark ruling could lead to new app warning requirements, although both companies plan to appeal the court’s decision.
A Los Angeles court has ordered Meta and Google to pay a total of $6 million in fines. Meta is responsible for the lion’s share, about $4.2 million.
The case stems from a lawsuit filed by a 20-year-old woman who claims she became addicted to Instagram and YouTube at a young age, which she says negatively impacted her life. She suffers from depression and anxiety, exacerbated by the constant scrolling.
The court ruled that Meta and Google deliberately designed their apps to be addictive, without warning users of the risks. “Today’s verdict is a referendum – from a jury to an entire industry – that accountability has come,” the woman’s lawyer said in a statement commenting on the court’s decision via Reuters.
It could cause these types of apps to issue warnings when users download and install them; But as is typical in these types of cases, Meta and Google disagree with the outcome and appeal.
For example, Google argued that YouTube as a video platform should not even be classified as social media.
Further legal proceedings are ongoing
Snapchat and TikTok apps were originally part of the case, but these companies settled before the trial began.
There are also parallel legal proceedings against the technology giants, partly due to insufficient safeguards for minors on social media. In one of these cases, Meta was ordered to pay $375 million.
This article originally appeared in our sister publication PC WELT and was translated and adapted from German.
