Google, Meta and TikTok have filed separate lawsuits to block California's Assembly Bill 1709, which restricts features for users under 16, citing First Amendment and Section 230 arguments.
Google, Meta and TikTok have filed separate federal lawsuits seeking to block a California law designed to protect children from social media harms. The lawsuits target Assembly Bill 1709, which Governor Gavin Newsom signed on September 10. The law is scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2027.
Assembly Bill 1709 prohibits social media platforms from offering underage children "psychologically exploitative features" that could lead to compulsive use, such as providing personal recommendations and sending videos through autoplay features. It also requires the deletion of children's accounts with those features. The law requires platforms to verify users' ages and implement "reasonable measures" to make sure those under 16 are not given access to addictive features.
The companies filed their lawsuits on Wednesday in different federal courts across California. Google filed in San Jose, Meta filed in San Francisco, and TikTok filed in Los Angeles. The lawsuits name California Attorney General Rob Bonta as the defendant.
All three companies argue the law violates the First Amendment and Section 230 of the federal Communications Decency Act. Meta wrote in its complaint that "The state cannot, consistent with the First Amendment, override Meta's editorial judgments." Google and TikTok made similar arguments.
Meta said the law violates the First Amendment "by letting the government dictate how ideas are organized, displayed, or shared with Californians." The company added: "Under the law, we would be forced to either remove features that keep teens' experiences age-appropriate, or cut thousands of California teens off from family, friends, and their communities."
TikTok called the law "a blatantly unconstitutional restriction on free expression that erodes the long-standing and protected practice of curating content based on user preferences, which bookstores, TV networks and streaming services all use."
Google said it believes parents are in the best position to make decisions for their families and that it offers a range of parental control tools and protections. Spokesman José Castañeda said: "Overly broad laws like this actually break the systems we've built to help kids find high-quality, age-appropriate videos."
Governor Gavin Newsom said when he signed the law that children's safety should always come first when considering social media platforms in California. The state "will not stand by while unregulated technology puts our children at risk," he noted.
The office of California Attorney General Rob Bonta said it was reviewing the filings and that it was committed to defending state laws to protect kids online.
The nonprofit Electronic Frontier Foundation has called the law "a massive privacy and free speech nightmare" and unsuccessfully urged Newsom to veto the policy.
Meta, Google, TikTok and Snapchat's parent Snap still face thousands of lawsuits by individuals, school districts, cities and government entities that claim social media platforms addict children and have caused a mental health crisis. In August, Meta agreed to pay up to $18 billion and limit teenagers' use of Facebook and Instagram under agreements with nearly all US states, which accused it of violating privacy and consumer protection laws.
Sources
This article was drafted with AI assistance and checked against the sources above. Company claims are reported as claims. Cover image is AI-generated.
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