Analysis-Meta’s social media settlement leaves its money machine unscathed

Meta Platforms has resolved its largest legal challenge in the U.S. with a deal that leaves its core business, personalized feeds and ad targeting, unscathed. The settlement, which requires Meta to pay up to $18 billion over a decade and restricts how teenagers use Facebook and Instagram, avoids a potentially lengthy trial that could have exposed internal documents about its treatment of young users.

Although the headline figure is among the largest ever settlements paid by a tech company, it is unlikely to strain Meta's profits, which exceeded $60 billion last year. The deal also sends Meta's shares up about 1%, indicating investors welcomed an outcome that costs the company far less than the $1.4 trillion in penalties it initially claimed it would face. Meta's legal troubles, however, are far from over, as other trials and legal challenges remain.