Google, Meta and TikTok have sued the state of California to block a new law restricting social media features that lawmakers say could encourage addictive behaviour among children under 16.
The three technology companies filed separate lawsuits on Wednesday, challenging Assembly Bill 1709, which prohibits social media platforms from offering minors certain features considered psychologically exploitative and likely to encourage compulsive use.
The law targets features such as personalised content recommendations and autoplay, which automatically plays another video when the current one ends. It also requires platforms to delete children’s accounts that use the restricted features.
In their separate court filings, the companies argued that the legislation violates their constitutional right to free speech and improperly interferes with how they organise and present content to users.
They also challenged the law under Section 230 of the federal Communications Decency Act, which generally protects online platforms from legal liability for content posted by third-party users.
Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, argued that California was attempting to dictate how platforms curate and display content.
“The state cannot, consistent with the First Amendment, override Meta’s editorial judgments about how to curate and display … billions of posts of third-party speech,” the company said in its complaint.
Google, which owns YouTube, and TikTok, owned by China’s ByteDance, raised similar arguments, maintaining that the law improperly substitutes the state’s judgment for that of parents and restricts how platforms deliver content to younger users.
The lawsuits name California Attorney General Rob Bonta as the sole defendant because his office is responsible for enforcing the law. His office did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Thursday.
California Governor Gavin Newsom signed the legislation into law on September 10, arguing that protecting children should be central to discussions about technology.
He said the state would not stand by while unregulated technology exposed children to potential harm.
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However, the legislation has attracted criticism from digital rights advocates and others who argue that restricting how platforms present content to minors could create privacy and free speech concerns.
The Electronic Frontier Foundation, a nonprofit digital rights organisation, described the law as a “massive privacy and free speech nightmare”, arguing that its provisions could have consequences beyond protecting children.
The legal challenge comes amid growing efforts in the United States and other countries to limit children’s exposure to potentially harmful social media features.
Several US states have introduced measures regulating minors’ access to social media, while Australia has imposed a ban on social media use by children under 16. Other countries are also considering or implementing similar restrictions.
The dispute also comes as major technology companies face mounting legal pressure over allegations that their platforms encourage addictive behaviour among young users.
In August, Meta agreed to pay up to $18bn and introduce limits on teenagers’ use of Facebook and Instagram under settlements with nearly all US states. The agreements followed allegations that the company violated privacy and consumer protection laws.
Google, Meta and TikTok, alongside Snapchat parent Snap, also face thousands of lawsuits filed by individuals, school districts, municipalities and government entities. The cases accuse the companies of designing platforms that encourage addictive use among children and contributing to mental health problems, including anxiety, depression and suicide.
Google filed its lawsuit in federal court in San Jose, California, Meta brought its case in San Francisco, while TikTok filed in Los Angeles.
The outcome of the cases could determine how far state governments can go in regulating the design of social media platforms for children and whether such restrictions infringe on the constitutional protections claimed by technology companies.
About the Author
Cecilia Attah is a tech analyst with a degree from Benue State University. She covers tech news and startups at TechRegard with a focus on how technology is transforming Africa and shaping the global landscape.
