Meta Wins Lawsuit Over Apple Privacy Changes and Sandberg’s Actions
Meta Platforms (the mother company of Facebook and Instagram) just won a legal issue. Shareholders sued Meta saying that Meta tricked them about the possible effects of Apple's new privacy features. They also accused Meta's former COO Sheryl Sandberg of taking advantage of business resources for her own advantage.
The Apple Privacy Changes
In 2021 Apple released a privacy update known as App Tracking Transparency (ATT). This feature let users to stop apps from tracking their online activities. This was terrible news for Meta. Why because tracking users allowed Meta to deliver more relevant adverts to customers. Without this tracking advertisers advertising parties didn't want to spend a lot of money on Facebook and Instagram ads.
The shareholders said Meta didn’t tell them how much this would hurt the company. They said that when the truth came out Meta's stock price dropped causing them huge losses. According to the lawsuit Meta should have alerted them about how serious the problem would be.
The Court's Decision
The US District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers who handled over the case dismissed the claims. She found that Meta's earlier statements about the impact of Apple's privacy updates were not showed to be incorrect. Meta later admitted that Apple's new restrictions could cost them $10 billion by 2022. But this did not mean they had lied earlier. The judge also dismissed the case with prejudice which means the shareholders cannot sue again on these grounds.
Sandberg’s Alleged Misuse of Resources
The lawsuit also made allegations against Sheryl Sandberg. She was accused of making use of Meta's resources for her own advantage. This included organizing her wedding and marketing her best selling book "Lean In". However these accusations were not backed by strong proof and were dismissed by the judge.
What This Means for Meta
The decision marks a big win for Meta. It avoids further legal issues and financial penalties. This win helps to remove some of the doubts that have hanging around Meta in recent years.
