The number of UK homes with a TV has fallen for the first time ever

According to new figures from Ofcom, the number of UK households with a television has actually fallen for the first time ever. It turns out we’re ditching the TV in favour of other, more useful, devices.

According to the figures, the number of UK homes with a television dropped from 26.33 million in 2012 to 26.02 million at the end of 2013. The drop is being blamed on people moving to devices like tablets and laptops which give users access to on-demand and catch-up services. In fact there are one million more homes with a broadband connection than there are with a TV, further highlighting the shift in people’s viewing habits.

Ofcom Chief Executive Ed Richards took the opportunity to emphasise the importance of digital infrastructure as we move into the future, and while we’re seeing an awful lot of advancements with 4G and super-fast broadband there are still rural areas that should not be ignored.

This is just one small change in the way we view television, and one that’s probably going to keep gaining momentum over the coming years. BBC Three is a very good example of a TV channel that’s making a transition to being broadcast online, a move that I can feasibly see other channels adopting in the next couple of decades.