A jury in the United States has found tech giants Meta and Google liable in a landmark lawsuit over social media addiction, a decision that could reshape how digital platforms are designed and regulated.
RMIT University experts say the ruling marks a turning point for the technology industry, forcing companies to take greater responsibility for the impact of their products on users.
Dr Dana McKay, Associate Dean of Interaction, Technology and Information at RMIT, said the decision mirrors past reforms in other industries that were required to reduce harm caused by their products.
“Many industries have been required to make changes to their products to reduce negative social impacts: lower emissions for cars, warnings on alcohol bottles, and changes to cigarette formulation to make them less addictive,” Dr McKay said.
“This change has now come to social media platforms, for the addictiveness of the algorithms their platforms use. This is not about the content these algorithms serve up, rather the ways they serve it up, which is designed to keep us engaged. Now, they have been found to be harmfully addictive.”
Dr McKay said the ruling could lead to major design changes across social media platforms.
“We are likely to see an end to infinite scroll, which has already been mooted in the EU, to nudge us to disengage,” she said. “We might also see less focus on likes and shares, and less promotion of highly emotive or inflammatory content.”
“In any case, we might all hope that this lawsuit is the end of a long history of technological determinism, and the beginning of a time where another large industry must take responsibility for the harms it causes.”
Distinguished Professor Lisa Given, Director of RMIT’s Centre for Human-AI Information Environments, said the decision is a “ground-breaking development” in the global effort to make online spaces safer.
“This decision is a ground-breaking development in the global push to keep children and other users safe in online environments,” Professor Given said. “It is a decision that will have far-reaching impact on social media platforms and other technology companies.”
She said the case is significant because it is the first successful lawsuit to hold technology companies accountable for the design of their platforms, including the features that deliver content to users.
“While Google and Meta are considering appeals, one key question remains,” Professor Given said. “If the finding is upheld, is the penalty of the judgement significant enough to force technology companies to change their design practices?”
“Regardless, this outcome will likely influence the thousands of other lawsuits pending in the United States alone, setting an important precedent for future cases.”
