"Thousands of plaintiffs' complaints, millions of pages of internal documents and transcripts of countless hours of depositions are about to land in US courtrooms, threatening the future of the biggest social media companies. The blizzard of paperwork is a byproduct of two consolidated lawsuits accusing Snap Inc.'s Snapchat; Meta Platforms Inc.'s Facebook and Instagram; ByteDance Ltd.'s TikTok; and Alphabet Inc.'s YouTube of knowingly designing their platforms to addict users allegedly resulting in youth depression, anxiety, insomnia, eating disorders, self-harm and even suicide."
"The social media companies have filed multiple motions to dismiss the cases on the grounds that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act prevents them from being held accountable for content posted on their sites. Those motions have been largely unsuccessful, and courtrooms across the country are poised to open their doors for the first time to the alleged victims of social media."
Thousands of plaintiffs have filed complaints alleging major social platforms intentionally designed features to addict users, contributing to youth depression, anxiety, insomnia, eating disorders, self-harm and suicide. The litigation has advanced despite attempts by companies to use Section 230 defenses to avoid liability. Most cases are consolidated into two multijurisdictional proceedings to streamline discovery. The first bellwether trial is set for late January in Los Angeles and involves a 19-year-old who reports a decade-long addiction and serious mental-health impacts. Additional trials follow, and successful outcomes could produce multibillion-dollar settlements and change minors' interactions with social media.
Read at www.mercurynews.com
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