Days before a scheduled trial, Snap has settled a lawsuit that accused the social media company of fostering addiction among users, according to various reports.
The New York Times reported that the settlement was announced on Tuesday in California Superior Court in Los Angeles County. The lawsuit was filed by a 19-year-old referred to as K.G.M., who claimed that the app’s algorithms and features contributed to addiction and mental health problems.
The details of the settlement have not been made public.
The lawsuit also implicates other platforms such as Meta, YouTube, and TikTok, but those companies have not reached similar settlements. It’s worth noting that Snap remains a defendant in other cases related to social media addiction.
Documents from ongoing litigation show that Snap employees have expressed concerns about the impact on the mental health of teenagers for at least nine years. Snap contends that these concerns were selectively presented and taken out of context.
The plaintiffs are drawing comparisons to Big Tobacco, citing lawsuits from the 1990s against cigarette manufacturers that concealed health risks. They argue that social media platforms hide information about potential harms, claiming that features like infinite scrolling, autoplay videos, and algorithm-driven suggestions trick users into excessive app use, which can lead to depression, eating disorders, and self-harm, as reported by the NYT.
Snap CEO Evan Spiegel was slated to testify in the trial—marking a first for a social media company facing a jury over addiction allegations, as no platform has lost such a case in court yet. Meanwhile, the case against Meta, TikTok, and YouTube is set to move forward with jury selection starting next Monday, January 27. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg is expected to testify.
If the plaintiffs succeed, legal experts suggest the outcomes could lead to multibillion-dollar settlements and possibly compel platforms to rethink their designs. However, the companies have maintained their defense, arguing that design decisions—like algorithmic recommendations and notifications—are akin to a newspaper curating its stories, and are thus protected by the First Amendment.
Snap has not responded to requests for comments.
