Social media giants sue California to overturn law shielding kids 15 and under from compulsive use

Meta, TikTok and Google are suing California to prevent enforcement of a new law that creates safeguards to protect children 15 and younger from becoming addicted to the platforms.

Assembly Bill 1709 is set to take effect on January 1 and blocks platforms from deploying features the law calls “psychologically exploitative.” 

The trio of tech giants — whose brands include Instagram, Facebook and YouTube — have said the law improperly allows the state to make decisions that should be left to parents.

The firms on Wednesday filed three coordinated but separate lawsuits in California federal courts. Google parent Alphabet filed in San Jose, Meta in San Francisco and TikTok in Los Angeles. 

The companies argue the law is unconstitutional because it violates freedom of speech principles.

The tech firms also assert that the soon to be implemented law ignores legal protections blocking platforms from being held liable for user content. That law, known as Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, has long been controversial, with many arguing that it amplifies algorithms and keeps big tech from being held accountable for harms.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a widely reported statement that he is “committed to defending California's commonsense laws to protect kids online.”

The law was signed in September by Governor Gavin Newsom, who reportedly said at the time that the state would not “stand by ​while unregulated technology puts our children at risk."

A spokesperson for Google said in a statement that the firm believes “parents are best positioned to make the right decisions for their families, which is why we offer a range of protections and tools that put parents in control.” 

“Overly broad laws like this actually break the systems we’ve built to help kids find high-quality, age-appropriate videos.”