Sam beaten to the post by Collins

Veteran basketball player Jason Collins has become the first openly gay athlete to play in a competitive game for a major US professional sports league after signing a 10-day contract with the Brooklyn Nets. Collins entered the court at the start of the second quarter in a game against the Los Angeles Lakers. The 35-year-old centre has played for five other NBA teams, but only revealed he was gay in a Sports Illustrated magazine interview last April. At the time he was not signed to a team. The news comes as Michael Sam, another US sportsman who recently revealed he is gay, prepares to take part in the NFL Scouting Combine - a showcase of college football players looking to be signed by NFL teams. But Collins isn't the first openly gay man to play professional sport in America - last May, Los Angeles Galaxy player Robbie Rogers became the first openly gay male athlete to play in a US professional league. However Major League Soccer, along with soccer itself, is not regarded as one of the four main sports competitions in the US. So now that we have an openly gay NBA player, and an openly gay NFL prospect, why not an openly gay MLB or NHL player? And while we're on the topic of more diversity in the major leagues of each sport, why not sign on a woman player? That would be a real game-changer. Speaking of changing the game, Netflix has agreed a deal with Comcast, the biggest internet service provider in the US, that will see its videos streamed faster and more smoothly. The multi-year deal will see Netflix servers connected directly to Comcast's network, removing third parties that slow down streaming speeds. However, Comcast said Netflix would not get "preferential network treatment". The deal may see Netflix enter similar deals, known as interconnect agreements, with other internet service providers across the country.