Accesso

accesso
Public
Traded as LSE: ACSO
Industry Amusement park virtual queue systems
Predecessor The Tellurian Devices Company
Founded August 2000 (2000-08) (Lo-Q)
Founder Leonard Sim
Headquarters Berkshire, England
Area served
 Worldwide
Key people
 Tom Burnet (CEO) John Alder (CFO), Steve Brown (COO)
Services ticketing, virtual queuing, guest management, ecommerce, access control
Revenue Increase £29.1 million (2012)[1]
Profit Increase £3.2 million (2012)[1]
Total equity Increase £7.5 million (2011)[1]
Divisions accesso LoQueue
accesso Passport
accesso Siriusware
ShoWare
Subsidiaries Located in Europe and North America
Website www.accesso.com

'accesso' (formerly Lo-Q) is a publicly listed technology company based in Berkshire, England.[2] The company designs and integrates ticketing and virtual queue systems in amusement parks, water parks and other attractions.

History

The concept of virtual queuing for amusement rides dates back to several World's fairs in the 20th century where time tickets were printed for attractions.[3] In the 1990s, Leonard Sim realised the need for a similar system for amusement parks.[4] In 1998, the first system was developed and prototyped at Thorpe Park.[5] In August 2000, Lo-Q was formed.[6] The company has since developed products such as the Qbot, Qtxt, Qband and Qsmart which operate at various locations across the world.[7]

On 5 December 2012, Lo-Q announced its acquisition of leading US ticketing and e-Commerce company, accesso, for £13.7 million. In November 2013, Lo-Q repositioned their overall brand as accesso to reflect the company's operations.[8] On 5 December 2013, accesso acquired leading North American ticketing and point-of-sale provider, Siriusware. The company now operates with three divisions: accesso LoQueue, accesso Passport and Siriusware.[9]

accesso LoQueue

A Qbot at Mirabilandia in Italy

The accesso LoQueue solution's primary industry is in virtual queuing devices for amusement parks, water parks and attractions. Products include the Qbot, Qband and Qsmart.[7] Several patents have been registered for their concepts.[10][11][12]

The 'Qbot' is the solution's most widely sold product. It is a handheld device which park guests can rent for the day. On the device, users can select an amusement ride they wish to queue for and the device will add them to a virtual queue. The Qbot device will notify users once their virtual queue time has elapsed through vibration and beeping.[13] In 2011, the 'Qband' was introduced for use at water parks. The device, which is similar in size and shape to a watch, functions similarly to the Qbot.[14] The Qsmart requires users to have a smartphone which they can use to join virtual queues in a similar method to the Qbot.[15] It replaced the Q-txt product which allowed any mobile phone to register a spot in virtual queues.[13]

The company has also entered into a memorandum of understanding with MasterCard to develop a contactless payment system, similar to PayPass, where users can pay for items with their Qbot.[16]

accesso Passport® ticketing suite

The accesso Passport ticketing suite offers a fully hosted eCommerce ticketing solution, as well as streamlined onsite ticket sales, season pass processing and access control. Ticketing products have been purchased by a variety of chains around the world including Cedar Fair,[17] Six Flags,[18] and Palace Entertainment.[19]

accesso SiriuswareSM solutions

Previously an independent company, Siriusware was acquired by accesso in December 2013. [20] Rebranded as accesso Siriusware in April 2015 ([21]), the suite offers guest management, ticketing, eCommerce and point-of-sale solutions for a wide variety of venues and attractions.

ShoWare

In November 2014, accesso acquired VisionOne Worldwide Ltd, a leading provider of ticketing solutions for casinos, fairs, sporting events, arenas, theaters, performing arts centers, and tours. VisionOne operates ShoWare™, a customizable cloud-based Software-as-a-Service ticket sales and distribution solution used by more than 475 venues and leisure organizations throughout North and South America, and processes more than 19 million tickets annually. [22]

Awards

In April 2015, The Queen's Award for Innovation was presented to the company for its accesso LoQueueSM virtual queuing solution, which allows visitors to reserve their place in line virtually using a handheld device, smartphone or RFID wristband.[23]

In November 2014, the accesso Passport eCommerce suite was awarded the 2014 Best New Product under the category of Revenue and Admission Control/Wristband/RFID technology by the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions. This version of the accesso Passport eCommerce solution allowed attractions the ability to leverage revenue-driving features across any device, and guests to easily purchase tickets, parking, season passes and other items from desktop, tablet or mobile. [24]

In 2008, accesso Passport ticketing solution won the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) award for Best New Product in the Revenue and Admission Control category.[18]

In 2011, the company, operating as Lo-Q, won the Queen's Award for International Trade as a result of the company doubling their exports and increasing their international sales by 120% over the course of 3 years.[13][25]

In November 2012, the IAAPA Brass Ring Award was presented to the company for its Qband.[26]

See also

Notes

    References

    1. 1 2 3 "October 2011 preliminary announcement" (PDF). Lo-Q. October 2011. Retrieved 19 April 2012.
    2. ↑ Whiterow, Philip (29 March 2012). "Lo-Q in the fast lane as new products come on stream". Proactive Investors Australia. Retrieved 11 April 2012.
    3. ↑ Wiess, Will. "The Waiting Game". Themed Attractions. Retrieved 11 April 2012.
    4. ↑ "Company Overview". Lo-Q. Retrieved 11 April 2012.
    5. ↑ Pritchard, Phill (3 October 2011). "Virtual Queuing in the UK". UK Park News. Retrieved 11 April 2012.
    6. ↑ "Flamingo Land Resort eases the queuing pain for visitors with Text-Q ride reservation system from Lo-Q". Source Wire. 22 April 2009. Retrieved 11 April 2012.
    7. 1 2 "Products - Lo-Q Plc". Your Guide. Retrieved 11 April 2012.
    8. ↑ "Lo-Q is now "accesso"" (Press release). Wall Street Journal. 12 November 2013. Retrieved 15 November 2013.
    9. ↑ "accesso acquires Siriusware". accesso. Retrieved 5 December 2013.
    10. ↑ US 6529786, Sim, Leonard, "Queue management system", published 1997-05-22, assigned to Maria N. Von Buhr and Chad Rapp
    11. ↑ US 2008080445, Bayne, Christopher; Butler, Christopher; Sim, Leonard, "Reservation Management System and Method", published 2008-04-03
    12. ↑ US 2010277276, Bayne, Christopher; Butler, Christopher; Sim, Leonard, "System For Regulating Access To A Resource", published 2010-11-04
    13. 1 2 3 "Lo-Q wins Queen's Award for International Trade". Proactive Investors USA & Canada. 21 April 2011. Retrieved 19 April 2012.
    14. ↑ "Lo-Q signs new deal with Six Flags". International Business Times. 21 November 2011. Retrieved 19 April 2012.
    15. ↑ "Lo-Q to power smartphone ticketing pilot at London Eye". International Business Times. 8 November 2011. Retrieved 19 April 2012.
    16. ↑ "Lo-Q, MasterCard partner for contactless payments in theme parks". ContactlessNews. 5 December 2011. Retrieved 19 April 2012.
    17. ↑ "Cedar Fair chooses accesso to drive e-commerce platform". Amusement Today. 27 October 2011. Retrieved 15 November 2013.
    18. 1 2 "Mission Admission". Park World Magazine. 28 January 2009. Retrieved 15 November 2013.
    19. ↑ "Kernels – September 2012". Park World Magazine. 7 September 2012. Retrieved 15 November 2013.
    20. ↑ "accesso". accesso.com. accesso. Retrieved Dec 5, 2013.
    21. ↑ "Siriusware Salespoint Solutions Rebrand to accesso Siriusware". blooloop. April 16, 2015. Retrieved April 16, 2015.
    22. ↑ "accesso acquires VisionOne, Worldwide, Ltd.". accesso. accesso. Retrieved Nov 10, 2014.
    23. ↑ "Accesso Receives The Queen’s Award for Innovation". blooloop. 22 April 2015. Retrieved 22 April 2015.
    24. ↑ "accesso Passport eCommerce Solution Named 2014 Best New Product by IAAPA". Press release. 19 November 2014. Retrieved 19 November 2014.
    25. ↑ "Lo-Q wins Queen’s Award for Enterprise". SourceWire. 21 April 2011. Retrieved 19 April 2012.
    26. ↑ "Lo-Q takes Brass Ring Award". InterPark Magazine: 28. January–February 2013.

    External links

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