RJ Phillips, a founding executive of Only the fansis once again veering into controversy as he processes his latest venture: a “mega social app” called Zoop. The platform is the official social media partner for the inauguration Improved gamesa multi-sport competition in Las Vegas on May 24 that openly encourages the use of performance-enhancing drugs to test the limits of human potential.
About 40 athletes will compete, including American swimmers and Olympic gold medalists Cody Miller AND Hunter Armstrong; Colombian weightlifter and Olympic silver medalist Leidy Solis; and Australian swimmer and former world champion James Magnussenwho comes out of retirement for the event. Nearly a million users have already registered Zoop or joined the waiting list, with athletes sharing training regimens and glimpses of life inside the event’s Abu Dhabi training camp.
The expanded games will feature a $1 million prize pool for world record-breaking performances, along with additional payouts for individual event winners. There will be no drug testing and the competition will not adhere to World Anti-Doping Agency rules governing the Olympic Games.
Despite the controversy surrounding the Games, Phillips insists it is not something he actively seeks. “We recognize there is some controversy around games. There are always new things coming out,” he told the Observer. He frames Zoop in familiar terms: just as OnlyFans is essentially a paid subscription platform rather than a porn site, Zoop is first and foremost a social hub that returns most of the money to the creators. As he said, “If you don’t want to watch cartoons, you don’t tune into Cartoon Network.”
A platform with creators at heart
Founded in 2020 by Phillips and co-founder of OnlyFans Tim StokelyZoop was originally launched as a platform for fan interaction through digital avatarswith added NFT trading capabilities. That model reflected the moment, but like many metaverse and NFT ventures – incl MetaIts own metaverse — which reportedly cost $80 billion before closing in March — ultimately required a pivot.
“We took a step back and said, ‘What are we trying to accomplish here?’ We’re trying to achieve better and fairer payments and setups for everyone involved in this ecosystem,” Phillips said.
It points to the imbalance in how content platforms distribute revenue. “If someone has gone off and filmed the knockout, and it’s gone online, the platforms make more money from that than Furythan the event organizers or anyone else,” he said. In his view, “you’re paying the table at the restaurant to hold your food while you eat. It doesn’t make sense to me.”
Zoop aims to differentiate itself by sharing over 80 percent of revenue with creators, including Advanced Games athletes in swimming, weightlifting and track and field. Phillips argues that the model is sustainable, even as the major platforms want it Instagram AND TikTok usually offer closer to 50 percent.
The platform also includes what Phillips calls an “AI kill switch,” allowing users to opt out of viewing AI-generated content and prioritize human-generated posts.
The broader creator economy underscores Zoop’s pitch. Of the more than 200 million content creators worldwide, only about two million earn six figures a year. Most influencers rely heavily on brand partnerships, with companies now devoting up to a quarter of their digital marketing budgets to influencer campaigns. Real-world influence is evident at events like Coachella, often called the “Influencer Olympics” because of the influx of brand-sponsored creatives.
Zoop is positioned as an alternative. With a greater share of revenue from advertising and user engagement, creators can enter what Phillips described as a “new world” where they can earn revenue “without product placement to sell goods that they may not necessarily believe in.”
The extended games themselves have drawn harsh criticism. Norwegian academics of sports science Øyvind Sandbakk AND Sigmund Loland describe the event as “high risk social experiment (that) abandons the principles that guide current elite sports: respect for the autonomy and health of athletes, fair competition and the pursuit of sport and human excellence.
Phillips says Zoop is taking a neutral stance on the debate, though he personally “likes what they’re trying to get there.”
Beyond Enhanced Games, Zoop is building partnerships with other global events to expand its reach. These include the first Eurovision contest in Asia, located in Bangkok in November. Phillips said the company is also in “advanced talks” to launch in mainland China later this year — an ambitious move given the country’s strict internet controls.
However, Zoop draws a clear line when it comes to moderating controversial content. The platform, Phillips said, will not act as an editorial authority on any contentious topic.
“Our responsibility is to operate safely, comply with applicable laws and regulations, and provide the infrastructure that allows (creators) to reach their audiences responsibly,” he said. “In cases like this, channel owners also have responsibilities around their content environments, while we make sure platform standards and government requirements are met.”
