70 per cent of UK online adults – and 87 per cent for 16-34s – now use a connected device whilst watching TV.

Thats according to research carried out by Sparkler on behalf of the IAB UK, which claims that the TV is no longer the focal point of the British living room. A biometric study found that 60 per cent of time in front of the TV in the evenings is actually spent on unrelated activities, most notably using a second device.

“Second screening is ingrained to such a degree that all screens are now equal, there’s no hierarchy, only fragmentation of attention – actually, switch screening is a much more accurate term,” said IAB chief strategy officer Tim Elkington. “Furthermore, entertainment is only a small part of the living room media activity. It’s now a multi-functional space where people jump between individual and group activities, be it shopping, social media, emails, work or messaging.”

While the number of people checking their device (35 per cent) during the breaks far outnumbers those who actually watch the ads in full (five per cent), the study found that second-screen activity doesnt actually increase significantly compared to during the programmes. Theres no difference in the number of people who check their emails during ads and programmes (34 per cent), while messaging and online shopping only increase by one per cent (compared to 31 per cent and 25 per cent, respectively).