Scots spend two months of a year in front of TV

SCOTS spend more than two months a year watching television, according to a TV Licensing report.

Research conducted for TeleScope 2012, which looks at TV viewing habits, showed that people consume, on average, 28 hours of television a week, including two hours of “catch-up”.

The figure is topped up further to an estimated 32 hours as viewers take to mobile devices like laptops, tablets and smartphones to watch programmes, the report said.

It also revealed a new trend of “chatterboxing” has gripped the nation as about a quarter (24 per cent) of people simultaneously talk to people online about the programmes they are watching, normally through a social media platform like Twitter or Facebook, or through texts.

TeleScope 2012 claimed social media sites are influencing viewing choices and reinforcing people’s desire to watch scheduled TV.

An Institute of Commercial Management (ICM) poll suggested that more than a third (38 per cent) of adults under the age of 35 watch a programme live, rather than on catch-up, because they enjoy being part of the related social media chatter.

One in seven (14 per cent) is more likely to watch something live because they are worried “social media spoilers” will ruin the ending. However, the “online buzz” is said to improve the overall viewing experience as the ICM poll showed 36 per cent of under-35s said it increases their enjoyment of a programme.