A federal judge Tuesday evening blocked tech lobbying group NetChoice’s challenge to SB 976, California’s recently enacted law that prohibits companies from providing “addictive feeds” to minors.
The effect of this decision will be effective from Wednesday when companies will do Providing addictive feeds to minor users residing in California is prohibited except with explicit parental consent. SB 976 defines an addictive feed as an algorithm that selects and recommends content to users based on their behavior rather than their explicit preferences.
From January 2027, companies will be required to use ‘age assurance technology’, such as age estimation models, to determine if a user is a minor and adjust their feeds accordingly.
Last November, NetChoice, comprised of Meta, Google, and The judge denied the motion for an injunction but blocked other elements of the law, including overnight notice restrictions for minors.
New York state also passed a similar bill last June.
