What does $17.1 billion mean for Meta?

A sign at the entrance to Meta’s headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif., Jan. 7, 2025. Meta on Wednesday reached a landmark settlement with 47 states, the District of Columbia and U.S. territories, agreeing to pay up to $17.1 billion in penalties and make major changes to its products over claims it endangered children with addictive social media platforms. (Jason Henry/The New York Times)

By EMMY MARTIN

The headline figure for Meta on Wednesday was $17.1 billion in penalties.

That was the amount the Silicon Valley giant agreed it could pay as part of a settlement with 47 states, the District of Columbia and U.S. territories over claims that it endangered children with addictive social media platforms.

Meta will initially pay about $12 billion. It could pay up to $5.1 billion more if Snap, the owner of Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube, also settles with the states and agrees to financial penalties and product changes.

The sum is a large amount for many states. But how big a deal is it for Meta? Here are some numbers for context.

$1.45 trillion

Meta’s entire stock value stands at $1.45 trillion. The $17.1 billion penalty is about 1% of that.

$200 billion

The four states that brought social media addiction claims against Meta in a case that was in trial in the U.S. Northern District of California in Oakland had initially sought roughly $200 billion in penalties.

$60.8 billion

Meta’s revenue in its most recent quarter was $60.8 billion. Last year, the company reported a total of $200.97 billion in revenue.

$18.3 billion

Meta’s profit last quarter was $18.3 billion. For all of last year, profit was $60.46 billion.

$2 billion

This is how much Meta said it had spent in the second quarter to handle legal challenges.