Aussies are clocking up long hours in front of the TV screen and glued to digital devices

Family view ... the TV is still the most popular screen in the house.

THE Australian love affair with television shows no sign of abating but we are increasingly boosting our screen time by watching video on our digital devices.

The Australian Multi-Screen Report released today shows that 47 per cent, or almost half of Australian households, now have a tablet, up from 40 per cent a year earlier.

About 12 per cent of the total amount of video we watch each month is viewed on a computer, tablet or smartphone.

Screen time ... Aussies are spending time in front of the TV and digital devices.

The fourth-quarter 2014 report shows Australians continue to embrace technology with nearly three quarters of Australians now owning a smartphone (up from 68 per cent), nearly a third owning a smart TV (up from 23 per cent) and 56 per cent of homes having a personal video recorder (up from 53 per cent).

Australians continue to sit in front of the box to watch their favourite television shows as much as they used to but they are also watching more video content on their computers, smartphones and tablets.

The national average for broadcast TV viewing is three hours and six minutes a day but some age groups go above and beyond in their dedication to tuning in to broadcast TV.

The biggest TV addicts are those in the 65 and older aged group. Teenagers and young adults watch the least amount of television and are the highest consumers of video on their smartphone.

Adults aged 18 to 24 are the largest consumers of online video, watching nearly 11 hours a month.

Other key findings of the report are:

• Australians watch an average of 90 hours and 27 minutes of broadcast TV on traditional TV sets a month.

• Eight per cent of broadcast TV viewing is on playback through TV sets.

• 13.288 million Australians watch video on the Internet each month.

• Australians spend 12 hours 18 minutes a month watching video on a digital device, namely a computer, tablet or smartphone. That is an increase up from 9 hours 35 minutes from a year ago.

OzTAM chief executive officer Doug Peiffer says Australians of all ages were watching more video on a second screen but TV remained the primary choice.

“The death of TV will follow the death of the couch,” Mr Peiffer said in the report.

The Australian Multi-Screen Report, released quarterly, combines data from the OzTAM and

Regional TAM television ratings panels, Nielsen’s national NetView panel, Consumer &

Media View database and Australian Connected Consumers report.