TikTok has opted to settle a groundbreaking lawsuit focused on social media addiction, just as the trial was set to commence, according to statements from the plaintiff’s legal team.
The popular video-sharing platform was among a trio of major companies—alongside Instagram, owned by Meta, and Google’s YouTube—accused of purposefully creating addictive environments detrimental to children. Recently, Snap Inc., the parent company of Snapchat, reached an undisclosed settlement concerning the same allegations.
Details regarding TikTok’s settlement remain under wraps, and the company has yet to comment on the matter.
The lawsuit centers around a 19-year-old referred to as “KGM.” Her case is pivotal, potentially setting the stage for thousands of similar claims against social media giants. She, along with two other individuals, has been chosen for bellwether trials. These trials serve as preliminary cases that allow both sides to gauge the potential outcomes and damages, should the cases proceed to a full jury trial, explained Clay Calvert, a senior fellow in technology policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute.
Despite the settlement, a lawyer representing the plaintiff confirmed that TikTok remains a defendant in ongoing personal injury lawsuits, with the trial against Meta and YouTube continuing as planned.
This week marks the start of jury selection in the Los Angeles County Superior Court, a significant milestone as it’s the first occasion these companies will present their defense before a jury. The ramifications could significantly influence their operations and strategies regarding young users. The jury selection is anticipated to span several days, with around 75 potential jurors being evaluated daily through at least Thursday. Meanwhile, Snap Inc. recently concluded its involvement with a confidential settlement.
KGM claims that her use of social media from an early age addicted her to the technology and exacerbated depression and suicidal thoughts. Importantly, the lawsuit claims that this was done through deliberate design choices made by companies that sought to make their platforms more addictive to children to boost profits. This argument, if successful, could sidestep the companies’ First Amendment shield and Section 230, which protects tech companies from liability for material posted on their platforms.
“Borrowing heavily from the behavioral and neurobiological techniques used by slot machines and exploited by the cigarette industry, Defendants deliberately embedded in their products an array of design features aimed at maximizing youth engagement to drive advertising revenue,” the lawsuit says.
Executives, including Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, are expected to testify at the trial, which will last six to eight weeks. Experts have drawn similarities to the Big Tobacco trials that led to a 1998 settlement requiring cigarette companies to pay billions in health care costs and restrict marketing targeting minors.
“Plaintiffs are not merely the collateral damage of Defendants’ products,” the lawsuit says. “They are the direct victims of the intentional product design choices made by each Defendant. They are the intended targets of the harmful features that pushed them into self-destructive feedback loops.”
The tech companies dispute the claims that their products deliberately harm children, citing a bevy of safeguards they have added over the years and arguing that they are not liable for content posted on their sites by third parties.
“Recently, a number of lawsuits have attempted to place the blame for teen mental health struggles squarely on social media companies,” Meta said in a recent blog post. “But this oversimplifies a serious issue. Clinicians and researchers find that mental health is a deeply complex and multifaceted issue, and trends regarding teens’ well-being aren’t clear-cut or universal. Narrowing the challenges faced by teens to a single factor ignores the scientific research and the many stressors impacting young people today, like academic pressure, school safety, socio-economic challenges and substance abuse.”
A Meta spokesperson said in a statement Monday the company strongly disagrees with the allegations outlined in the lawsuit and that it’s “confident the evidence will show our longstanding commitment to supporting young people.”
José Castañeda, a Google Spokesperson, said Monday that the allegations against YouTube are “simply not true.” In a statement, he said “Providing young people with a safer, healthier experience has always been core to our work.”
TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday.
The case will be the first in a slew of cases beginning this year that seek to hold social media companies responsible for harming children’s mental well-being. A federal bellwether trial beginning in June in Oakland, California, will be the first to represent school districts that have sued social media platforms over harms to children.
In addition, more than 40 state attorneys general have filed lawsuits against Meta, claiming it is harming young people and contributing to the youth mental health crisis by deliberately designing features on Instagram and Facebook that addict children to its platforms. The majority of cases filed their lawsuits in federal court, but some sued in their respective states.
TikTok also faces similar lawsuits in more than a dozen states.
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