How a Social Media Addiction Trial Threatens Big Tech

"Two of the world's largest social media platforms are facing a jury trial over allegations that they intentionally designed their products to be addictive to young people drawing comparisons to Big Tobacco's reckoning with consumer addiction three decades ago. The trial in Los Angeles, the first of its kind, centers on a 20-year-old woman who says her nonstop use for more than a decade of sites including Meta Platforms Inc.'s Instagram and Google's YouTube caused her to suffer anxiety, depression and body dysmorphia."

"The companies are exposed to potentially billions of dollars in damages and the possibility that they could be forced to overhaul core features of their platforms."

Two of the world's largest social media platforms face a Los Angeles jury trial alleging intentional design choices to make their products addictive to young people and prompting comparisons to Big Tobacco's historical reckoning over consumer addiction. The lawsuit centers on a 20-year-old plaintiff who reports more than a decade of nonstop use of platforms including Meta's Instagram and Google's YouTube, attributing her sustained use to subsequent anxiety, depression and body dysmorphia. The companies confront potential liability reaching into the billions of dollars and could be required to change or remove core platform features if plaintiffs prevail.

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