Social media behemoths Meta and Google have been held accountable for fostering addiction among users in a groundbreaking £2.2 million legal battle. The lawsuit, a first of its kind, targeted Facebook owner Meta and YouTube, aiming to establish social media platforms’ liability for harm caused to children. Following over 40 hours of deliberation spanning nine days, a California jury concluded that both companies were negligent in the design and operation of their platforms, including features like the ‘infinite scroll’ function alleged to induce addiction in users. The jury attributed the companies’ negligence as a significant factor in causing harm to a 20-year-old woman, who claimed her childhood use of social media led to addiction and exacerbated her mental health issues. She was granted $3 million (£2.2 million) in damages.
The substantial monetary award is expected to increase as the jury determined that the companies acted maliciously, prompting further hearings for additional damages. Meta and Google-owned YouTube were the remaining defendants in the case after TikTok and Snap settled prior to the trial commencement.
During the trial in Los Angeles, jurors were presented with a month’s worth of arguments, testimonies, and evidence, including statements from the woman identified as Kaley. Kaley, who started using YouTube at six and Instagram at nine, testified that she immersed herself in social media throughout her childhood. Legal representatives for Kaley, led by Mark Lanier, aimed to demonstrate that the social media firms’ negligence significantly contributed to Kaley’s harm. They highlighted specific design elements intended to engage young users, such as infinite feeds, autoplay functions, and notifications, which they argued were designed to captivate users.
Although lawyers representing the platforms refuted the accusations of causing harm, emphasizing the tools available for users to monitor and customize their usage, a Google spokesperson disagreed with the verdict and announced plans to appeal, asserting that YouTube is a responsibly built streaming platform, not a social media platform.
The case, selected as a bellwether trial, holds significance as its outcome could influence numerous similar lawsuits in the US against social media giants. Amid mounting legal challenges, platforms are bracing for additional legal proceedings this year, amidst increasing scrutiny regarding their approach to child safety and the potential addictive nature of their algorithms.
In a separate trial in New Mexico, Meta was found liable for endangering children, leading to a $375 million (£280 million) damages ruling for failing to warn users about platform risks. The jury denounced the company’s engagement in “unfair and deceptive” and “unconscionable” practices. Criticisms against tech giants persist, accusing them of permitting content that contributes to mental health issues, drawing parallels to past actions against tobacco companies.
Andy Burrows, Chief Executive of the Molly Rose Foundation, hailed the ruling as a significant milestone highlighting the detrimental impact of aggressive and addictive algorithms on young people’s mental health, urging for legislative measures to safeguard youth wellbeing.
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