AI (artificial intelligence) integrated billiards analysis program to be launched within the
year
“When we say that billiards platforms are being paid for, everyone says who will pay for them. However, I was surprised to see that there were 1,300 paid members and 165 billiard clubs in just over a year. haha. We plan to increase the number to 30,000 (paid members) and 700 (affiliated stores) within three years.”
Park Jeong-gyu, CEO of Cusco, a billiards scoreboard company, was surprised to see that premium member services, which are operated for a fee, were gradually established.
Paying billiards platforms is one of the most difficult challenges for the billiard world. That’s why people around me told me not to do anything stupid. However, CEO Park pushed through the worries of the people around him, and in about a year, he is reaping the desired results.
Based on this, Cusco is slowly shifting its business direction from ‘scoreboard installation’ to ‘platform service development’. In particular, it continues to strengthen and expand paid and free content services of its own platform ‘Quni’.
In September 2021, Cusco reorganized its own platform (smartphone app) ‘Cusco’ into ‘CUEUNY’. In this process, a large number of contents such as games for club games are added to the platform, and some of them are provided exclusively for paid members (Quni Premium members) and Cusco affiliated clubs (Quni affiliated stores).
In August, the ‘Quni’ app will be reorganized once again. In line with this, Cusco’s strength, imaging technology, will advance one more time. The ‘video synthesis by inning’ technology using video data such as the vast top cam is released as ‘Quni’.
In addition, Cusco plans to launch a program incorporating AI deep learning (AI self-learning function) technology within the year. This is a joint project with a partner company (Irove), and the previous result, ‘AI (Artificial Intelligence) AR Vision Billiards Analysis Program (Billiai)’ is currently on the market.
As the ‘official scoreboard company’ of the current Korea Billiards Federation (KBF) and the World Carom Federation (UMB), Cusco’s role continues. It is based on the technology of the Cusco Scoreboard System, which was first established in Korea (September 2011).
As such, it is the present of Cusco, a scoreboard company that is steadily increasing its influence in various fields of billiards. On the 27th of last month, we met with CEO Park Jeong-gyu at the Cusco office (Seocho-dong, Gangnam-gu) to hear about the present and future blueprint of Cusco.
▲ What are Cusco’s recent major business areas?
=Based on improving the scoreboard system, we are concentrating our capabilities on developing platform (smartphone app) services such as ‘Quni’, ‘Cusco President’ and ‘Cusco Waiting Manager’. It is also actively seeking investment to expand business areas and expand its business.
▲ Why are you concentrating on ‘platform service development’?
= Several years ago, I saw that the time had come for a new business model unique to Cusco. The days when the scoreboard had a big impact on club management for the past few years have already passed, and in the meantime, clubs have been groaning in the aftermath of ‘Corona 19’. As a result, Cusco, clubs, and club members searched for a win-win method and chose the billiards ‘platform subscription service’ as a new business model.
▲ Can you introduce the three platforms (smartphone apps) currently in operation?
=First of all, the ‘Quni’ app is a smartphone app that is the essence of know-how accumulated by Cusco for more than 10 years. The existing platform ‘Cusco’ app was reorganized and opened in September 2021. Another major overhaul is expected in August.
The ‘President of Cusco’ app is a club management app for club owners. The customer management menu, which was mainly classified only by male and female, will be subdivided into individual queues, preferred beverage types, etc., and various customer management functions such as sending text messages will be added. It will be updated within the year.
‘Cusco Standby Manager’ is a club match matching app. The subject of matching is the club, not Cusco, and it is a characteristic and advantage that flexible matching is possible according to the circumstances of the stadium.
▲ With ‘Quni’, you are making a ‘paid billiards platform’, which is rare in the billiards world.
= For a little over a year, some of the contents of ‘Quni’ have been in paid service. The service provided by the ‘Cusco’ app is provided free of charge as before, but newly added content is charged. The target is ‘Quni affiliated stores’ and ‘Quni Premium members’ (paid members).
Some people were concerned about ‘who will pay for the billiards platform’, but fortunately, the number of paid members and clubs is steadily increasing. The current status of paid members (as of the 12th of this month) is 165 ‘Quni affiliated stores’ and 1,300 ‘Quni Premium members’, which is by no means a small number considering the recruitment period (1 to 2 years). Franchise stores began attracting in earnest from February 2022, and premium members from September 21.
▲ There must be a goal for a paid premium member.
= Within 3 years, we are aiming for 30,000 ‘Quni’ premium members and 700 member clubs. 30,000 premium members is a very significant number in the current billiards world, which has an estimated billiards club of 100,000 to 200,000. To this end, ‘Quni’, which currently has more than 200,000 members, will be gradually converted into ‘paid members’ through paid content.
The ‘Bread Battle’ game, in which club members compete with each other with virtual currency (bread) and the winner gets the bread, has been officially opened and serviced on Cusco’s own platform, ‘Quni’, from the 1st of this month. The picture shows the Cusco scoreboard ‘Bread Battle’ access screen.
▲ The content that started service recently.
= From May 1st, the ‘Bread Battle’ service was officially opened on ‘Quni’. It is content that competes with virtual goods (bread) at the Cusco scoreboard installation club. It is a game in which opponents bet bread on each other and the winner gets the bread.
This ‘bread’ is accumulated by 100,000 loaves every month for ‘Quni’ premium members, and 1,000 loaves are additionally provided after the game. For general members, 100 loaves of bread are provided only when they play at ‘Quni Affiliated Stores’. On ‘Bread Battle Day’ (every Monday and Wednesday), you can receive twice as much bread. 2000 bread for premium members, 200 bread for general members. With this ‘bread’, you can purchase billiard equipment at the store in ‘Quni’.
▲ The main game content other than ‘Bread Battle’.
=Stamp, Quni Race, slot game, and Qunito are positioned as the main game content within ‘Quni’. In addition, premium members are given missions such as achieving a high run with a certain score every week, and when they achieve it, mileage and certain items that can be used within ‘Quni’ are also provided.
The reason for servicing this content is the desire of clubs to increase the number of games more than they do now. An increase in the number of games means an increase in customers, right? Through this, I wanted to help club owners who are struggling in the aftermath of ‘Corona 19’ and provide ‘fun’ to club members.
▲ The video technology is being upgraded.
= In line with the reorganization of ‘Quni’ in August, the ‘video synthesis’ technology independently developed by Cusco will be released. It is a service that combines (gathers) only the innings into one video when a club member selects an inning they want to watch again with ‘Quni’ and requests synthesis at the Cusco scoreboard installation club. Detailed information by innings, such as scores, was also made easy to check with subtitles. It is a service that was developed keeping in mind the step of directly uploading it to social media by friends.
▲ A billiard learning program grafted with AI (artificial intelligence) is also being developed.
= We are developing a program that combines the AI (artificial intelligence) deep learning technology of our partner ‘Irove’ (CEO Jung Yoon-sik) with the vast top cam data, which is an asset of Cusco. Through this, you can receive information such as the scoring success rate and high-probability shots analyzed by AI after the game. The final goal of the program is to establish a system that allows club members to study billiards alone. It is planned to be released within the year.카지노사이트
▲ Do you have any tips for using the Cusco video function that you would recommend to your friends?
=(Confidently) It is a ‘bookmark’ function. When re-watching your billiards video with ‘Quni’, if you have ‘bookmarked’ (marked a specific part) on a specific part, you will be able to find the part you want to see again much more easily. It’s not a great technique, but many friends say it’s ‘convenient’.
▲The title of ‘official scoreboard company’ for domestic and international competitions will be maintained this year.
= Yes. The Cusco scoreboard has been installed in various competition halls at home and abroad as the ‘official scoreboard’ of the Korea Billiards Federation (KBF) and the World Carom Federation (UMB) for several years. KBF has been cooperating for 4 years and UMB for 5 years. The tournament management system that Cusco has built will be utilized. It would be more accurate to say that this is done out of a sense of duty rather than for the purpose of promoting or profiting the company.
▲ In addition, the 4th ‘Premium Tip’ of the ‘Cusco Tip’, which was released in two versions 2 years ago, will be released soon.
= Yes. It is released in three versions: H, M, and MH. It is the 4th ‘Premium Tip’ that goes beyond the previous 2 versions and the 3rd ‘Black Edition’. ‘Cusco Tip’ is a product that came out to the world with Cusco’s philosophy of providing proper billiard equipment to club members, and is a purely domestically produced tip. We (Cusco) intend to introduce it not only to the domestic market but also to the Vietnamese market. We plan to recruit data with ‘Quni’. In addition, personal billiard goods such as gloves are additionally developed and introduced to the market.
At the end of the interview, CEO Park Jeong-gyu (pictured) expressed his wish, “I want to build and export a K-billiards culture that is win-win for companies, clubs, and club members.”
▲Lastly, while billiard equipment companies are making inroads into overseas markets recently, does Cusco have any plans to go abroad? Also, the final goal.
=Currently, many clubs in Vietnam, Japan, and Europe have Cusco scoreboards installed, but there are no plans to quickly expand them. When the ‘enjoyable K billiards culture’ centered on platforms such as ‘Quni’ described at length above and the Cusco scoreboard is created, I want to introduce it to the rest of the world.
I am a member of the billiards business and a billiards club member, and I am a person who can immediately listen to the needs (what they want) of the club site club members. Those needs are steadily being reflected in Cusco’s projects. In the future, I want to remain in the billiard world as a ‘company that listens to the voices of club members’.