$1.4 trillion. That's what four state attorneys general want from Meta when the case goes to trial in Oakland, California, in just a few weeks.
New Mexico already went first and collected $375 million in March. Now, California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey want their turn. They're not thinking small dollars either.
The four states are seeking the figure in penalties over claims that Meta designed Facebook and Instagram to addict young users and lied to the public about it. Meta, whose market cap sits around $1.5 trillion, disclosed the number in a court filing on Monday.
"A sanction of that size has no analog in the history of consumer protection enforcement," Meta said in the filing. A spokesperson called the states' calculations "outlandish" with "no basis in fact or law."
The states' filings are sealed. During a June hearing, though, the attorneys general laid out the formula: violations multiplied by statutory fine amounts, with every young user on Meta's platforms counted as a violation. Every teenager who ever opened Instagram is a billable event.
Twenty-nine states sued Meta in federal court under the federal Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, most alleging the company collected data from minors without parental consent.
Read More: Meta Faces $375 Million Verdict After Jury Finds It Misled Public on Child Risks
LA Jury Finds Google, Meta Liable for Their Addictive Apps, Young Woman Gets Millions
The August trial covers those claims alongside the four states' consumer protection case, the track carrying the $1.4 trillion figure.
U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers denied Meta's motion to toss the case. She found factual disputes over whether the platforms are addictive, whether Meta lied about it, and whether the company partially targeted children. She also ruled against Meta on parental consent under the privacy law.
California AG Rob Bonta, a progressive Democrat who has made suing tech companies a centerpiece of his tenure, called it a "critical win."
"We look forward to holding Meta fully accountable at trial in August," Bonta said.
Meta has denied the allegations, arguing the attorneys general have no evidence of consumer deception, partly because "social media addiction" isn't in the DSM, the clinical bible for psychiatric diagnoses. It's not a recognized psychiatric diagnosis. You can't lie about something that has no clinical definition.
The company has also said Facebook and Instagram were built for general audiences, not children under 13. And then there's the question nobody in that Oakland courtroom wants to, or can even answer: Where were the parents?
Meta, Snapchat, YouTube, and TikTok are each facing thousands of similar lawsuits in federal and state courts across the country.
A judge is still weighing the second phase of the New Mexico case, which includes a court order that would effectively let a federal judge dictate how Meta builds its products.
In August, Meta goes back before a jury. This time, with $1.4 trillion on the board and a coalition of state AGs who watched New Mexico collect and want their turn.
Editor's Note: Do you enjoy RedState's conservative reporting that takes on the radical left and woke media? Support our work so that we can continue to bring you the truth.
Join RedState VIP and use promo code FIGHT to receive 60% off your membership.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member