SEOUL - AfreecaTV, a famous Korean streaming platform, has just acquired Five&Six. From various sources in Korea and Billiard industry, to save his company which was in serious financial trouble, former owner William Oh had to give up most of his shares in exchange for a cash contribution of 4 million dollars. Thanks to this exceptional financial contribution, the prize money from last January's Inter Burgo Grand Prix, organized by Five&Six, could just be paid out. So players should finally see the money in their bank accounts this week.
With AfreecaTV, the UMB rights holder is now a listed company with a solid financial base. The last years, UMB's funding had depended on Five&Six's ability to sell billiard equipment, generate revenue from streaming platforms such as Youtube, but mostly on the partners' ability to invest at a loss. Since 2017, the company managed by William Oh has made losses of more than €5 million exploiting UMB Rights (media, sponsorship and organization). This information has been confirmed several times by William Oh during player's meetings.
On UMB side, the strategic decisions now depend on a media group that has been broadcasting both PBA and UMB events for the past two years. We must hope that AfreecaTV's decision-makers will be more open and constructive, as their influence could be decisive in finding a compromise between the two organizations. A meeting during the next Worldcup in Vietnam has been confirmed between the UMB President Farouk Barki and PBA manager Heejin Lee.