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TikTok has agreed to a settlement with the plaintiffs and will not participate in the high-profile social media trial that begins Tuesday.
Lawyers for the plaintiffs said the trial in Los Angeles Superior Court will proceed as scheduled. meta and of the alphabet YouTube.
“This is a good resolution and we are pleased with the settlement,” Mark Lanier, an attorney representing the plaintiffs, said in a statement. “This trial focused on meta and YouTube.”
The case has been compared to lawsuits brought against “Big Tobacco” in the 1990s and is the first of several major lawsuits against social media companies in 2026.
The lawsuit centers on allegations that the design of some social media and streaming video apps, such as Instagram and YouTube, harms the mental health of teenagers and young adults and makes them addicted to the services.
The focus on the app’s alleged design flaws is part of a legal strategy to counter claims by technology companies that certain content shared on their platforms is protected by Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.
last week, snapThe parent company of social media app Snapchat has reached a settlement agreement with the plaintiffs and is not currently participating in the lawsuit.
TikTok remains a defendant in other personal injury lawsuits, according to plaintiffs’ attorneys.
Another major trial involving meth begins next week in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
In this case, the New Mexico Attorney General’s Office alleges that Facebook’s parent company failed to protect its apps, resulting in the exploitation of children by online predators.
Later this year, another large-scale social media trial involving TikTok, Meta, YouTube, and Snap is scheduled to begin in Northern California.
In the federal lawsuit, social media companies will dispute allegations that their app designs led to unhealthy and addictive behaviors in teens and children.
TikTok’s U.S. operations have been hit by a wave of glitches and errors since becoming a separate joint venture to meet national security laws. The company said the outage was caused by a power outage at one of its data centers.
Some users complained about the issue and also claimed that the app censored certain political information.
Attention: TikTok signs agreement to remain in the US
