Google Meet adds ability for admins to control background replacement

When enabled, users can replace the background and when the setting is disabled for the meeting organizer, participants will not have the option to change their background regardless of their own settings.

Google has added the ability for admins to enable or disable the use of custom or preset background in Meet for meetings organized by an Organizational Unit (OU) level.

Introduced in October 2020, custom background allows Google Meet users to replace their background with an image. Users can either use Google's hand-picked images which include office spaces, landscapes and abstract backgrounds or upload their own image.

Now, the new setting will determine whether meeting participants can change their background when joining a meeting. In the Google Meet section of the Admin console, within the Meet video settings, admins can control whether users can change their backgrounds.

Image Credit: Google

When enabled, users can replace the background and when the setting is disabled for the meeting organizer, participants will not have the option to change their background regardless of their own settings.

The new 'Let users select custom images' option in Google Meet will be ON by default and can be disabled at the OU or group level. However, it will be disabled by default for Education and Enterprise for Education domains.

The new setting is rolling out to both Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains and will be 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.