Tiktok pays million-dollar settlement in Alabama over allegations of social media addiction

The US state of Alabama accuses Tiktok of driving minors into social media addiction. Shortly before the trial begins, the video platform gives in and wants to pay. The amount is in the three-digit million range, but has not yet been exactly determined.

The video platform Tiktok has used a settlement to avert a trial planned for Monday in the US state of Alabama due to allegedly inadequate protection of minors from social media addiction. As Attorney General Steve Marshall announced on Friday (local time), the company will pay at least $100 million as part of the agreement and limit daily usage time for young users to two hours.

The minimum amount must therefore be paid within 45 days. Under certain conditions, it could be increased to up to $300 million, it said. The settlement ends the proceedings three days before the trial is scheduled to begin in Montgomery. Lawsuits from more than a dozen other US states against Tiktok remain unaffected.

Tiktok seduces young users like slot machines

The state of Alabama sued Tiktok and its Chinese parent company Bytedance in April 2025. The video app seduces young users in a similar way to “slot machines,” the lawsuit said. Investigators who registered as 13 to 15 year olds were shown videos about suicide, self-harm, eating disorders, alcohol and sex, among other things.

The state also accused Tiktok of deceiving parents about protective functions for minors. Tiktok had rejected the allegations and cited a US federal law that exempts online platforms from liability for content published by users.

This year, several trials have already taken place in the USA against Instagram and Facebook parent Meta and Google's video platform YouTube. They were sentenced to heavy fines.