About

The Chat and Collaboration (C&C) feature empowers moderators to engage participants, manage interactions, and monitor session performance in live (webcast) and Kaltura Room entries. 

Moderators can manage the C&C per session via the media edit page (Chat tab), tailoring the experience to meet specific needs. Check out our article Manage chat settings for the New Room for details.

Key features 

• Group chat: Pin or delete messages, block users, and connect with attendees in real-time.
• Q&A management: Respond to attendee questions in a structured format.
• Interactive tools: Launch polls, quizzes, and share real-time updates via the Interaction tab.
• Backchannel: Collaborate privately with other moderators during live sessions.
• Participants tab: Shows everyone in the room, and as a host or moderator, you can manage their capabilities. 
• Session management: Configure chat settings, view participant lists, and customize the widget’s theme to align with your branding.
• Reports and analytics: Download chat transcripts, track user participation, and review moderator activity post-session.

C&C transforms sessions from passive viewing into active participation, enhancing engagement and collaboration.

Open the C&C panel 

The C&C menu is located on the right sidebar in desktop and on the bottom of the screen in mobile. In your New Room, click the expand button (arrow icon) in the upper right corner of the screen.

The C&C engagement panel opens.

Interactions tab

The Interactions tab lets moderators create and publish tools like polls, quizzes, rating scales, crowd votes, open-ended questions, reactions, and announcements. This tab is only visible to moderators.

Poll

1. Click Poll to start.



2. Type your question and options.

Click + Add option to add more options (up to five total). To remove an answer, hover over it and click the trashcan icon.



3. Decide whether to share results with attendees.
4. To allow participants to select multiple answers, check Enable multiple answers.
5. Choose Save as a draft or Publish now:

• Save as Draft: Saves your poll for later. You can access it from the Interactions tab to edit or publish whenever you're ready.
• Publish Now: Immediately displays the poll as a toast popup and adds it to the Feed sub-tab in the Live Stage tab.

Quiz question

1. Click Quiz question to begin.



2. Type your question and answers.
3. Click + Add answer to add more answers (up to five total).

If you want to remove an answer, hover over the answer and click the trashcan icon.



You can set up your quiz to allow multiple correct answers by clicking the check mark next to each correct option. You can mark all answers as correct if needed, but at least one must be selected.



The answers you mark as correct will display in green.



4. Decide whether to display the correct answer or share results with attendees.
5. Choose Save as a draft or Publish now:

• Save as Draft: Saves your poll for later. You can access it from the Interactions tab to edit or publish whenever you're ready.
• Publish Now: Immediately displays the poll as a toast popup and adds it to the Feed sub-tab in the Live Stage tab.

Rating scale poll

1. Click Rating scale to begin.



2. Type your question/statement.
3. Choose your rating scale emoji.
4. Decide whether to share results with attendees.
5. Choose Save as a draft or Publish now.

• Save as Draft: Saves your poll for later. You can access it from the Interactions tab to edit or publish whenever you're ready.
• Publish Now: Immediately displays the poll as a toast popup and adds it to the Feed sub-tab in the Live Stage tab.

Crowd vote poll

1. Click Crowd vote to begin.



2. Type your question/statement.
3. Choose your crowd vote emoji.
4. Decide whether to share results with attendees.
5. Choose Save as a draft or Publish now.

• Save as Draft: Saves your poll for later. You can access it from the Interactions tab to edit or publish whenever you're ready.
• Publish Now: Immediately displays the poll as a toast popup and adds it to the Feed sub-tab in the Live Stage tab.

Crowd reaction

1. Click Crowd reaction to begin.



2. Hover over the desired crowd reaction to highlight it, and a Send button will appear.



3. Click to send the crowd reaction.

All users can choose from a set of five reactions that display horizontally at the bottom of the Chat and Collaborate widget. See Reactions for more information.

Open-ended question

1. Click Open-ended question to begin.



2. Type your question in the text field.
3. Decide whether to share results with attendees.
4. Choose Save as a draft or Publish now.

• Save as Draft: Saves your poll for later. You can access it from the Interactions tab to edit or publish whenever you're ready.
• Publish Now: Immediately displays the poll as a toast popup and adds it to the Feed sub-tab in the Live Stage tab.

Announcement

1. Click Announcement to begin.



2. Type a title for your announcement (optional), such as Mid-webinar alert!
3. Then type the announcement itself, such as Get your questions ready for the upcoming Q&A session!
4. Click + Add CTA button.

Additional options display.



5. Enter a label for your CTA button and the URL users will be directed to when they click it. If you decide not to include a CTA, simply click the trashcan icon to remove it.
6. Choose Save as a draft or Publish now.

• Save as Draft: Saves your poll for later. You can access it from the Interactions tab to edit or publish whenever you're ready.
• Publish Now: Immediately displays the poll as a toast popup and adds it to the Feed sub-tab in the Live Stage tab.

Survey

Create a survey

1. Click Survey to begin creating a survey.



2. The survey name is the session name by default; however, you can edit the name. Simply hover over and click on the current name, then type as desired. (max 150 char)



3. The survey intro text is by default "Please take a moment to take a quick survey" and the survey start button is by default "Take survey"; however, you can edit them both. Simply hover over the intro text and click Edit. 



The Edit Intro screen displays.



4. Type your intro text and a label for the survey start button, then click Save. 

Add questions to your survey

Click to select a question type you would like to add to your survey - Multiple choice, Icon choice, Rating scale, or Open question. The creation page for the selected question type displays.

Multiple choice -

1. Type your question and up to 8 answer options.
2. Click + Add option to add more.
3. Click the trashcan icon to delete an option.
4. Toggle on Multiple answers or Mandatory, if needed.
5. Click Save.

Icon choice -

1. The default call to action  is“Start voting now” – you can click to change it.
2. Choose your icons.
3. Optional: Make it mandatory.
4. Click Save.

Rating scale -

1. The default call to action is “Start rating now” – click to edit it.
2. Select your emoji scale.
3. Optional: Make it mandatory.
4. Click Save.

Open question -

1. Type your question.
2. Optional: Make it mandatory.
3. Click Save.

   

Once you've added one question to your survey, simply click the + Add content button and select another question to add.

You can add up to 10 questions.

Once you're finished creating your survey, click Done. The survey is saved in the Interactions drafts. 

Edit a survey 

1. If you aren't already in the Interactions drafts, click the Interactions drafts button on the Interactions tab.

   

2. Hover over the desired survey and click the Edit (pencil icon) button.

   

   The draft survey edit screen displays.

   

3. Make appropriate changes and click Done. The survey is saved in the Interactions drafts.

Publish a survey

1. If you aren't already in the Interactions drafts, click the Interactions drafts button on the Interactions tab.

   

2. Hover over the desired survey and click Publish now.

   

   The survey is published to your attendees immediately, initially displaying as a small toast popup in the lower left corner of the screen, then in the Feed sub-tab of the Live stage tab.

   

   Attendees can:

   • Click Take survey to begin.
   • Submit answers and click Submit.
   • Dismiss the toast (survey remains available in the Feed).

End a survey

1. Click the Live stage tab, then click the Feed sub-tab.

   

2. Under the Take survey button, click on the settings (gear icon) and select End survey.

   

   The survey will now be marked as Ended in the Feed.

   

Updates tab

The Updates tab displays the notifications sent from the moderator to all participants during the session. The Updates tab displays the same to an attendee and a moderator.

Attendee view

The following shows the Updates tab with a small toast popup in the lower left corner of the screen.

Attendee view

Live Stage tab

The Live Stage tab is only for a specific context, for example, a specific session, and includes tabs for Chat, Q&A and Feed.

Chat tab

The Chat tab provides a space for group chat within a specific session or context. Attendees can write, like, and reply to messages, as well as delete their own messages. Moderators have enhanced capabilities, including pinning messages, deleting all messages, blocking users, and accessing interaction tools. The interface and options differ slightly between attendees and moderators.

• Type your message in the text field to start chatting.
• Hover over any message to:
  • Select the Like icon to like the message.
  • Select the Reply icon to reply to the message.
  • Select the Trashcan icon to delete any message.
  • Select the Pin icon to pin the message to the top of the list. (Pinned messages can be unpinned by a moderator.)
  • Select the Block icon to block the user from the group chat.
• Use the interaction cards at the top of the screen to access additional interaction capabilities.

Mobile

All actions (like, reply, delete) are available by tapping. Long-press or tap the three dots icon to access moderation tools like pinning or blocking.

Q&A tab 

The Q&A tab allows attendees to ask questions directly to moderators, who can respond to them within the session.

Single thread versus multi-thread (multiple question threads) capability

The Q&A tab supports two configurations for managing questions, determined by your admin:

Single thread (default):

All questions from a specific attendee are grouped into a single thread. This creates a unified conversation flow between the attendee and moderator.

Multi-thread:

Each question asked by an attendee is displayed as its own separate thread. This allows attendees to have multiple threads open with the moderator, making it easier to organize questions by topic or context.

Admins can select the configuration that best suits the session's needs for clarity and efficiency.

Single thread example:

Multi-thread example:

Attendee view

Mobile

The Q&A experience supports both single and multi-thread layouts. Tap to open and navigate threads. Some interface elements may appear stacked or compact.

If there are no messages from attendees, the following is displayed.

Moderator view

If there are messages from attendees, the following is displayed. 

Moderator view

The number of pending chats and claimed chats are displayed, along with arrows allowing you to either expand or collapse both lists. 

To read a pending or claimed chat, click on the chat (not the Reply button). 

To claim a pending chat and begin a one-on-one conversation with that attendee -

1. Click the Reply button to the right of an attendee's name. A one-on-one conversation is initiated with that attendee.

Moderator view

2. Type your message in the text field. Notice a message above the field reads "Answering as [Session Name]", indicating that you are talking in the chat as a moderator, and you are not in a private chat. 

To navigate back to the Q&A tab, click the back arrow. 

To un-claim and send the chat back to pending chats, click the three dots and choose Send back to pending chats button.

Moderators have the following additional capabilities in the Q&A tab, just as they do in the Chat sub-tab. 

• Hover over any message to:
  • Select the Like icon to like the message.
  • Select the Reply icon to reply to the message.
  • Select the Trashcan icon to delete any message.
  • Select the Pin icon to pin the message to the top of the list. (Pinned messages can be unpinned by a moderator.)
  • Select the Block icon to block the user from the group chat.
• Click one of the interaction 'cards' at the top of the screen to access interaction capabilities.

Feed tab

The Feed tab functions like a social media feed, displaying various session components. Both attendees and moderators use this tab to view items such as pinned messages and interactions, including polls, rating scale polls, and crowd vote polls. The Feed tab layout and functionality differ for attendees and moderators.

Attendee view

Moderator view

Moderators can:

• Hide results of a poll, end polls, and unpublish polls on the Feed tab. 
• Pin a message from the Chat tab and Q&A tab and it will display on the Feed tab as a "pinned message". (A message that was pinned can also be unpinned by a moderator.)
• Click one of the interaction "cards" at the top of the screen to access interaction capabilities.

Mobile

Feed items like polls and reactions are fully visible and interactive. Layouts are stacked vertically for easier scrolling.

Backchannel tab

The Backchannel tab provides a private space for moderators to communicate with each other during a specific session. This tab functions similarly to the Chat tab but is exclusive to moderators designated for that session.

The following figure depicts a Backchannel tab with no messages posted. 

The following figure depicts a Backchannel tab populated with moderator messages. 

• Type your message in the text field to start chatting with other moderators.
• Hover over a message and select the Like icon to like a message. 
• Hover over a message and select the Reply icon to reply to a message from another moderator. 
• Hover over any one of your messages and select the trashcan icon to delete the message.
• Click one of the interaction cards at the top of the screen to access interaction capabilities.

Participants tab

The participants tab is where you can see all the users in the room and as a host/moderator, you can also manage user capabilities.

Sections

On the Participants list, users are listed under the following section(s):

1. Raised hands
2. On stage
3. Viewers

Each section indicates the number of users in that section, as well as the names of the users, with a label for moderator, host, or custom permissions. Icons for raised hand and microphone are displayed when relevant, to the right of each name.

You can click on the v to the left of each section name to collapse the section, and then the > to expand it. When there are many users listed in a section, you will also see the clickable options to See more and then See less.  

Search

Wondering if someone is in your room? Or who is on stage? The search bar is a handy tool to navigate the Participants list. You can start typing in the search bar, and the list will display results for the text you've entered as well as in which section the user(s) appear.

Managing participants

At the top of the list, you'll see All participants with the number, and a three dots menu. Clicking the three dots menu will offer the following options:

• Mute all microphones (except yours)
• Turn off all cameras (except yours) 
• Clear raised hands

You can manage users individually by navigating to a name in the list, and hovering to click a raised hand icon to lower it, or clicking a microphone icon to mute or unmute a user (when the user is on stage). 

There is also a three dots menu next to each name which offers more actions:

• Invite to stage/Remove from stage
  • Invite to stage send the user a Set devices popup window where they can Decline invitation or Join stage.

    

  • Until the participant responds to an invitation, you'll have the option to Revoke invite on stage (even if another moderator initiated the invitation).

    

• Spotlight
• Set as moderator
• Set as speaker
• Edit permissions (see Users' Permissions)
• Remove from room

  

• When clicking the three dots menu next to your own name, you'll have the options to Turn off camera if on stage, and Join stage/Remove from stage.

  

Items available in the three dots menu depend on user relevant capability and only those with relevant capability can manipulate participants' streams.

• Turn off camera - Turns off the participant's camera. 
• Remove from stage - Adds/removes the participant from the stage. That participant can always join the stage again if enabled by a moderator. 
• Set as moderator - Sets that participant as a moderator.
• Set as speaker - Sets that participant as a speaker.
• Edit permissions - Edits the participant's user permission. See User permissions.
• Remove from room - Removes the user from the room.

Settings

A participant can configure their own settings. Click the three dots at the bottom of the right panel to display the options. 

Toggle on the desired item to enable it.

• Allow toast notification - Some examples of toast notifications include new polls, messages sent specifically to you, or updates. 
• Show my last name - Displaying your full name, not just your first name.

Reactions

1. The possible reaction types display horizontally. Click on the Reactions icon (clapping hands emoji).



2. Click on the desired reaction emoji.

The reactions you initiate will display to everyone in the session.