META PAYS $12.6B TO END TEEN SAFETY TRIAL

🚨 $12.6 billion. That is what Meta agreed to pay to end a federal trial over child safety on its apps.

CNBC reports Meta and a coalition of state attorneys general settled a major federal case in Oakland centering on allegations the company misrepresented the extent of child-related mental health harms caused by apps like Facebook and Instagram.

The deal surfaced in a court filing released Wednesday laying out a proposed consent judgment. Per CNBC's Jim Cramer, 7% of the $12.6 billion is paid now.

📈 Investors liked it. Meta shares gained 5% in premarket trading after the news broke.

The money is only half of it. Under the filing, Meta must build daily usage limits and nighttime blocks for teenagers on apps like Facebook and Instagram, add enhanced age assurance measures to keep children off the platforms, and ship additional tools for parents and guardians.

The case stems from a 2023 lawsuit and a combined action representing a bipartisan group of 29 attorneys general, co-led by California AG Rob Bonta alongside the AGs of Colorado, New Jersey and Kentucky.

It settled in the second week of trial, one day after Instagram chief Adam Mosseri testified that he does not direct employees to withhold child-safety and product information from him to provide cover in potential litigation.

The venue mattered. The trial was running in Meta's home state, with multiple states aligned against it.

Would nighttime blocks on teen accounts actually change anything, or is $12.6B just the cost of doing business here?

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