What did Meta really accomplish by its multi-billion dollar settlement?

When you get into the details, you’ll find that Meta is trying to use the deal to handicap rivals and boost its own business.

The deal isn’t as big as it appears. Meta is initially on the hook for about $12 billion. (It agreed to an additional $1 billion in a separate settlement with Texas.) But that will be broken into installments over a decade, meaning its annual payouts will be equal to less than 1 percent of the $201 billion in revenue the company pulled in last year.

Less than 1 percent of Meta’s revenue comes from teens, a member of the company’s legal team told reporters.