Other social media and technology companies should “be paying very close attention” to Meta’s approximately $18 billion settlement over allegations its platforms harmed children, Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti told FOX Business.
“I think you’re going to see the next domino fall very soon,” Skrmetti said, arguing the agreement sets a precedent for holding social media, artificial intelligence and other child-facing platforms accountable.
Meta announced Wednesday it had reached an agreement with 52 attorneys general across states, U.S. territories and Washington, D.C., to pay up to $18 billion and overhaul teen experiences on Facebook and Instagram.
The settlement, which requires court approval, resolves claims filed by 47 states.
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“The most important thing is that all of the design decisions that made Instagram dangerous for kids are being addressed,” Skrmetti said.
“So, there are guardrails in place, there are time limits. Parents have much more control over what their kids are going to see. There’s more transparency there. So, it’s going to make it a better experience for kids.”
The agreement requires time limits, nighttime restrictions, stronger age checks and expanded parental controls for users under 18, according to Meta.
“The goal is to eliminate all of the triggers for mental health problems that were baked into the platform as a result of the effort to make it so addictive,” Skrmetti said.
Skrmetti said the changes to Meta’s platforms are ultimately more important than the financial penalty.
“They agreed to some pretty sweeping changes, and that’s way more important than the money,” he said.
Meta said the payments will be distributed annually over 10 years, with participating states receiving approximately $12.7 billion. Another $5.3 billion will be released only if TikTok and YouTube implement specified child-safety measures and make matching payments.
An independent auditor will assess Meta’s implementation of and compliance with the agreement, according to the company.
“If kids are still at risk, if some of these features aren’t addressed in a way that meaningfully changes the danger of the platform for young users, the auditor will be in a position to make that public,” Skrmetti said.
The states would then be able to seek enforcement of the agreement, he added.
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Skrmetti said companies that have not reached similar agreements could increasingly become the focus of litigation.
“As fewer and fewer participants in the industry have not entered a deal like this, they’re going to be under incredible pressure because all of the litigation focus is going to be on them,” Skrmetti said.
He said the settlement should also serve as a warning to the broader technology industry.
“If they’re designing exploitive elements into the platform that take advantage of kids and the vulnerabilities of kids’ brains, there will be consequences down the road for that,” he said.
Skrmetti also credited the bipartisan coalition that negotiated the agreement.
“I think it’s kind of inspirational that you had people who have very different political opinions come together and work to do right by America’s kids,” Skrmetti said.
Meta said the agreement builds on its existing efforts to protect teens and give parents greater control over their children’s use of its platforms.
“Ensuring teens have a safe and productive experience on our platforms is an absolute imperative for Meta,” the company said in a statement. “We want to get this right for parents and teens, and that’s why we partnered with state attorneys general to set a new industry standard.”
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A Meta spokesperson referred FOX Business to comments from Chief Legal Officer C.J. Mahoney, who called on TikTok, YouTube and other platforms to adopt the same safeguards.
“The framework we’ve negotiated will empower parents to easily manage how their children access our platforms,” Mahoney said.
“Our new Time Limit commitments, Night Mode features and usage limits during school hours set the right path forward for our whole industry, but this framework will only work if all our peers join us. Because teens move fluidly across dozens of apps, we need an industry-wide solution. We therefore call on our industry peers, TikTok and YouTube, to implement this new framework, right away.
“As a parent, I’m proud of both the work Meta has done to protect kids historically and of this new groundbreaking agreement. But its success depends on all other social media platforms following Meta’s lead.”
YouTube and TikTok could not immediately be reached by FOX Business for comment.
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