The US District Judge Edward J Davila has upheld California’s Senate Bill (SB) 976, which targets addictive social media features for minors.

The bill, known as the Protecting Our Kids from Social Media Addiction Act, was signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom in September 2024.

The latest decision blocks a preliminary injunction motion by tech lobbying group NetChoice.

SB 976 regulates companies offering personalised media feeds as a significant service component.

From 1 January 2025, companies must not serve addictive feeds to California-based minors without explicit parental consent.

This regulation aims to curb minors’ exposure to algorithm-driven content tailored to user behaviour rather than explicit preferences.

The law mandates that from 1 January 2025 to 31 December 2026, companies must restrict access to certain features for users known to be minors, unless they have verifiable parental consent.

From January 2027, companies are required to implement age assurance techniques, such as age estimation models, to identify minors and adjust content accordingly.

NetChoice, whose members include Meta, Google, and X, filed a lawsuit in November to block SB 976, arguing it violated the First Amendment.

While the judge denied the injunction, some law elements, including restrictions on nighttime notifications for minors, were blocked. New York enacted similar legislation in June.

In a similar development in December 2024, Albania announced a one-year ban on the short video app TikTok following the killing of a teenager, which has raised concerns about the influence of social media on children.