A new report shows that things are not looking good for makers of televisions. The number of U.K. homes with a TV fell last year for the first time ever. The report says that after decades of television sales increasing, sales are moving in the opposite direction. The number of U.K. homes with a TV fell from 26.33 million at the end of 2012 to 26.02 million at the end of 2013. This is a fall of 300,000. The first survey on TV ownership in Britain was in 1956, when just over 30 per cent of homes had a TV. This increased to around 93 per cent in the 1970s.

The fall in TV ownership in Britain is probably because people use tablets, mobile phones and other devices. People are choosing to watch 'catch-up' TV, which is when they record their favourite programmes and watch them later on tablets, etc. Catch-up TV on smartphones, tablets, computers and games consoles is becoming more popular. The BBC said that 47 per cent of requests for its iPlayer service is from tablets or mobiles. It was 25 per cent in 2012. Fifteen per cent of 18-24-year-olds watch most of their TV on a laptop, compared to the U.K. average of 3 per cent.