NetChoice

U.S. Jury Holds Google and Meta Liable for Social‑Media Addiction

Meta suffered adverse jury verdicts in two high-profile U.S. trials this week: a New Mexico jury awarded $375 million against Meta in a youth-safety case, and a Los Angeles jury found Meta and YouTube liable in a personal-injury/social-media addiction suit, assigning $6 million in combined damages with Meta responsible for about 70% (~$4.2M) and Google/YouTube about $1.8M. Both companies said they will appeal. The rulings have sparked renewed debate over Section 230 and broader platform liability. Investors reacted negatively, cutting Meta shares nearly 8% on Thursday and about 17% year-to-date amid concerns over its AI strategy, high costs and heavy planned capital spending (up to $135 billion this year). Meta also announced hundreds of layoffs across multiple units including Reality Labs. Legal precedent, not the monetary awards, is viewed as the bigger industry risk.

Costco and United Airlines Innovate Ad Strategies Amid Regulations

Costco unveiled plans to build an in‑house ad business, creating an ad network that uses first‑party data from its 74.5 million households to target shoppers on and off its site. The retailer is beta testing audience targeting with its own data and intends to expand testing to its site. United Airlines launched Kinective Media, an in‑flight advertising platform that personalizes ads for passengers based on travel details and age; ads run on seat screens with a 30‑second pre‑roll and are also personalized via the mobile app to near‑by retailers, with expansion planned to international flights. New York passed a bill to prohibit addictive social media feeds for users under 18 unless parental content is obtained, with age verification required and governor expected to sign; NetChoice opposes, citing constitutional concerns; Meta is among NetChoice’s members. The digest notes ongoing coverage of first‑party data and privacy in advertising.