Google is adding the ability for admins to control if meeting participants can switch to custom or preset backgrounds on Google Meet.
The tech giant enabled support for custom backgrounds on its video conferencing platform Google Meet last year. With this new update, admins have the ability to enable or disable the use of custom or preset backgrounds in Google Meet for meetings organised by an organisational unit (OU) level.
The feature will be on by default and can be disabled at the OU or group level. The “Let users select custom images” option will be disabled by default for Education and Enterprise for Education domains.
“The setting will determine whether meeting participants can change their background when joining a meeting. For example, when the setting is OFF for the meeting organiser, participants will not have the option to change their background regardless of their own settings,” Google explained in a blog post.
The feature is available to Google Workspace Essentials, Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, Enterprise Essentials, Enterprise Standard, and Enterprise Plus, as well as G Suite Basic, Business, Education, Enterprise for Education, and Nonprofits customers.