Waiting Lobby with Video Embed

The waiting lobby feature allows participants to wait in a comfortable environment before they are admitted to a video room. The wiating lobby is a virtual space where participants can wait until they enter a video room. This feature allows moderators to control who is admitted to a video room and the time of admission. The waiting lobby can be customized with a background image or a video, and messages can be displayed for participants to let them know their waiting status.

Overview

A participant is forced to wait in a lobby when the video room entry is restricted. Moderators can force two types of entry restrictions for participants:

  • Moderated entry: When a moderator chooses which participant to invite into the video room. The knock room allows participants to wait until they are allowed by the moderator to join a session.
  • Wait for moderators to join: Make participants to wait until the moderator joins the session.

Room Entry Restriction

You can manage participant entry into meeting rooms in the following ways:

Moderated Entry

Participants may have to wait in the lobby until the moderator allows them to join the session, individually or all at once. Such entry restriction is imposed with a room setting named knock. A knock-enabled room does not allow participant entry to a room without moderator permission.

Sample Code

/* Define a knock-enabled room */
{	"name": "Room name",
	"owner_ref": "XOXO",
	"settings": {
		"knock": true	/* To enable moderated entry */
		...
		...
	}
}

Wait for Moderator to Join Before Participants

Once a moderator joins a session, all participants waiting in the lobby are automatically admitted to the video room. Consequently, all participants are admitted directly to the video room without having to wait. Such entry restriction is imposed with a room setting named wait_for_moderator. A wait-enabled room does not allow participants to enter a room until the moderator joins it.

Sample Code

/* Define a wait-for-moderator enabled room */
{	"name": "Room name",
	"owner_ref": "XOXO",
	"settings": {
		"wait_for_moderator": true	/* To enable wait-for-moderator */
		...
		...
	}
}

For more information, see the Video Server API Methods.

Waiting Lobby

By default, the waiting lobby is a blank page with a notification message placed on it. Participants may, however, prefer a better waiting experience in the lobby. You can run a presentation or video talking about your service, topic, or agenda for the waiting participants. For example, you can upload a presentation about your company's upcoming product launch to keep participants engaged while they are waiting to enter the video room.

Ways to Decorate a Lobby

EnableX provides several options for decorating a lobby:

  • Background music: You can play background music using an external MP3 file link.
  • Image slide show with or without background music: You can present an image slide show with a maximum of 3 external URLs. Optionally, you can have the background music accompany the slideshow.
  • Text carousel with or without background music: You can present a text carousel with a maximum of 3 sentences or phrases. Optionally, you can have the background music accompany the carousel.
  • Video play: You can play a video with an external MOV file link.

Decoration using Query String Parameters

All types of decorations are supported by query string parameters. These parameters must be passed to the meeting URL, which is used as an IFRAME source URL or a WebView URL.

Sample Code

// Example: To play background music to Participants in Lobby
<IFRAME 
	allow="camera; microphone; fullscreen; speaker; display-capture" 
	src="MEETING-URL?lobby_music=PATH-TO-MP3-file">
</IFRAME>

Note:

  • Add lobby decoration parameters to the participant meeting URL to embed. These parameters are not needed for the moderator meeting URL.
  • While using an external image, video, or an MP3 URL in the query string parameters, ensure that the hosting server for these resources is CORS-enabled. Otherwise, the related resources cannot be loaded. For more information, see Query String Support for Lobby Decorations.
Virtual Background