Meta’s historic loss in court could cost a lot more than $375 million

New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez won a historic sum of $375 million in a landmark child safety case against Meta earlier this year. But the next stage of the fight could be even more consequential for Meta and the social media industry at large.

Beginning Monday, attorneys for Meta and New Mexico will return to a Santa Fe courthouse for a three-week public nuisance trial, where they’ll argue over the changes the AG wants the judge to order Meta make to Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. Those changes include adding age verification for New Mexico users, prohibiting end-to-end encryption for users under 18 and capping their use to 90 minutes per day.

Meta’s defenses are likely to highlight the trade-offs between privacy and child safety, suggesting that stricter limits on encryption could make it harder for teens to protect themselves from cyberbullying or online predators. Meanwhile, they may argue that the $375 million fine is already a hefty price to pay, making additional changes feel like overkill.

The trial also raises questions about whether New Mexico’s proposed rules are too specific to be applied across Meta’s platforms globally, and if they could set a precedent for other states or countries to impose similar mandates. For instance, will end-to-end encryption become the norm worldwide, potentially complicating international messaging for younger users?

Additionally, Meta might point out that the $375 million fine was already significant enough to impact their quarterly earnings, suggesting that further changes won’t necessarily improve user experience or safety.

Overall, the trial could redefine how social media companies balance innovation with child protection, setting a benchmark for future regulatory battles in the digital realm.

Meta’s historic loss in court could cost a lot more than $375 million. New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez won a landmark child safety case against Meta earlier this year, winning a sum of $375 million. The next stage of the fight could be even more consequential for Meta and the social media industry at large.

Attorneys for Meta and New Mexico will return to a Santa Fe courthouse for a three-week public nuisance trial beginning Monday, where they’ll argue over the changes the AG wants the judge to order Meta make to Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. Those changes include adding age verification for New Mexico users, prohibiting end-to-end encryption for users under 18 and capping their use to 90 minutes per day.

Meta’s defenses are likely to highlight the trade-offs between privacy and child safety, suggesting that stricter limits on encryption could make it harder for teens to protect themselves from cyberbullying or online predators. The $375 million fine is already a hefty price to pay, so further changes might feel like overkill.

The trial raises questions about whether New Mexico’s proposed rules are too specific to be applied globally, and if they could set a precedent for other states or countries to impose similar mandates. Will end-to-end encryption become the norm worldwide, potentially complicating international messaging for younger users?

Meta might point out that the $375 million fine already impacted their quarterly earnings, suggesting that further changes won’t necessarily improve user experience or safety.

Overall, the trial could redefine how social media companies balance innovation with child protection, setting a benchmark for future regulatory battles in the digital realm.