Meta Settles With Both Plaintiffs in LA Social Media Addiction Trial, Leaving Snap Alone

Meta will not face a jury in the latest social media addiction trial.

The settlements

On Friday, Meta reached a settlement with an 18-year-old plaintiff identified in court papers as K.D.B., her lawyers said, according to CBS News and NBC News. It had settled with the other plaintiff, S.J., a day earlier, NBC reported. The terms are confidential. TikTok and YouTube had already settled with both plaintiffs before trial.

The plaintiffs say social media platforms were designed to be addictive and contributed to their mental health problems.

Snap goes it alone

Jury selection began this week in Los Angeles. Snap, the maker of Snapchat, is now the only defendant, with opening arguments set for Nov. 4, NBC reported. The plaintiffs say features like Snapstreaks, Snapscores, push notifications and filters drove compulsive use. They say that use contributed to depression, anxiety, an eating disorder and self-harm.

NBC said the case is the fourth bellwether in a group of cases against Instagram, YouTube, TikTok and Snap. More than 1,600 plaintiffs are involved, including over 350 families and over 250 school districts.

Meta's response

"Trials, dismissals and settlements are all common in the bellwether process, and this litigation is no exception," a Meta spokesperson told CBS News. "We will continue to defend ourselves in court, and we stand by our record." For background, see our story on jury selection.