A Los Angeles jury declared Meta and YouTube guilty on Wednesday of harming minors' mental health in a historic lawsuit over social media addiction. The companies will have to pay $3 million in damages and other potential losses. The trial began in late January at the Los Angeles Superior Court with the lawsuit of a 20-year-old who alleged she became addicted to apps like Instagram and YouTube during her childhood. Both platforms will have to pay $3 million in compensation for moral damages and other economic losses. According to the ruling, Meta is responsible for 70% of that cost and YouTube for the rest. The jury in this historic trial, composed of seven women and five men, will continue to deliberate to decide on additional punitive damages the companies must pay for pain or fraud. The outcome of this lawsuit represents a significant victory against tech giants and sets the groundwork for resolving around 1,500 similar cases against social media companies. The young woman's lawsuit, identified as K.G.M., also included TikTok and Snapchat, which reached undisclosed settlements to avoid the first in a series of historic trials against social media platforms. This ruling adds to the verdict issued yesterday by a New Mexico jury that also found Meta guilty of concealing information about deficiencies in its platforms and business practices that facilitated child sexual exploitation and was fined $375 million. These lawsuits are part of a broader wave of cases questioning the practices of the tech industry and could set precedents on the limits of social media liability in the U.S.
