ABSTRACT
Products liability law is unclear on whether apps are products. Trial courts are faced with an increasing number of products liability cases brought against companies that create apps offering a blend of technology, content, and services. Without guiding authority, trial courts inconsistently conclude that apps are or are not products. Although many scholars have posed products liability as a mechanism to promote safety in the development of emerging digital technology such as autonomous vehicles and AI, the threshold question of whether software is a product and remains unanswered.
The court in In re Social Media Adolescent Addiction/Personal Injury Products Liability Litigation sought to streamline the analysis of whether an app is a product by looking at functionality within the app rather than the app as whole. To further promote administrability and consistency, this Note advocates extending In re Social Media’s framework: an app or a feature should be considered a product when it has a user experience or user interface intended for consumer use.
Sanchez, Karina, ‘Are Apps Products?’: Consumer Software and Products Liability (April 8, 2025).
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