diff --git a/src/backendmanager.cpp b/src/backendmanager.cpp
--- a/src/backendmanager.cpp
+++ b/src/backendmanager.cpp
@@ -226,7 +226,7 @@
         qCWarning(KSCREEN) << "You are trying to load a backend in process, while the BackendManager is set to use OutOfProcess communication. Use loadBackendPlugin() instead.";
         return nullptr;
     }
-    if (m_inProcessBackend.first != nullptr && m_inProcessBackend.first->name() == name) {
+    if (m_inProcessBackend.first != nullptr && (name.isEmpty() || m_inProcessBackend.first->name() == name)) {
         return m_inProcessBackend.first;
     } else if (m_inProcessBackend.first != nullptr && m_inProcessBackend.first->name() != name) {
         shutdownBackend();