While the company did not admit to any wrongdoing, the agreement ends a federal trial in California where states claimed Meta violated consumer protection and privacy laws.
Additionally, the company settled a separate, similar case with Texas for approximately $1 billion.
The settlement carries significant consequences for Meta’s advertising-driven business model, as it mandates specific product changes designed to curb social media addiction and protect younger users.
Meta must now limit teenagers to two hours of daily cumulative use across its apps and block most features between midnight and 6 a.m.
Furthermore, push notifications—automated alerts used to drive user engagement—will be muted during school hours.
These measures aim to address features that attorneys general argued were intentionally designed to exploit adolescent psychology.
As part of the agreement, Meta will also establish an independent social media research foundation and provide data to outside experts studying the effects of these platforms on well-being.
The company is currently pressuring competitors like TikTok and YouTube to adopt similar safety standards, indicating it may shorten the duration of its own restrictions if rivals do not comply.
While this settlement resolves a major legal threat, Meta continues to face numerous lawsuits from individual families and school districts regarding its impact on youth safety.