The experience of writing a book and sharing his stories prompted Andre Agassi "to invest in Unscriptd, an athlete-video site that re-launched last week with proprietary technology allowing athletes to film their own video," according to Daniel Roberts of YAHOO FINANCE. Unscriptd first launched in '13 "as a content aggregator that housed sports video clips from across the web, but now its focus is using software to offer fans 'an unfiltered view' from athletes." Former Nike execs Brent Scrimshaw and Ben Crowe founded the free site along with sports researcher Todd Deacon. Agassi "has invested in the company" along with his wife, Steffi Graf, pro surfer Stephanie Gilmore and former Australian sprinter Cathy Freeman, among others. Agassi did not disclose how much he invested, but he "appears to be taking the lead role among the group of athlete shareholders." He said that he is "eager for Unscriptd to become known as the 'authentic' provider of athlete video." Roberts noted the site is "entering a crowded space containing upstarts and incumbents." Established sports media companies like ESPN, SI, Vice Sports and Yahoo have all been aggressively pushing video, and often get access to big stars." More than any other competitor, Unscriptd is "facing off against" The Players' Tribune, which has "already become a place where athletes go to break their own news, circumventing reporters and the traditional press." However, Agassi claims Unscriptd "is different" than The Players' Tribune. Agassi: "We’re not asking anybody to come to a place, we’re bringing it straight to them. This is video content, it's global, it’s not just one place, it’s more comprehensive. It’s a different deal than what that is" (FINANCE.YAHOO.com, 1/25).
