Meta Platforms was ordered to pay New Mexico US$25bn on Wednesday, hours after reporting third-quarter operating income of nearly US$13bn.
Shares rose more than 3 percent in after-hours trading, CNN reported, and revenue climbed 26 percent year over year to more than US$64bn.
New Mexico district court judge Francis Mathew set the award at US$219.5bn under state law before reducing it to US$25bn, CNBC reported from the court filing.
Interest accrues at 15 percent a year until the penalty is paid in full.
Reuters described the sum as one of the largest financial penalties in US history.
“The harm in this matter is difficult to overstate, and goes to the heart of Facebook’s basic business proposition,” Mathew wrote in a 20-page judgment quoted by the New York Times.
According to CNBC, a Santa Fe jury found in September that Meta committed more than 43 million violations of New Mexico’s Unfair Practices Act, each carrying a civil penalty of up to US$5,000,
Jurors concluded that 26 of 29 statements made by Meta and its leadership on data privacy and content moderation were unfair or deceptive, the New York Times reported.
New Mexico lawyer Randi McGinn asked for between US$35bn and US$40bn at an October hearing, Reuters reported, while Meta urged a cap of US$3.45bn, arguing it does not sell user data and that the state had not proven any consumer was misled.
Chief legal officer CJ Mahoney said Meta will appeal.
“This ruling, and the Attorney General’s approach to this...
The rapper's agency said recent allegations shared online were fabricated, and filed a criminal complaint against the accuser. Rapper Yang Hong-won's agency has denied allegations that he cheated o...