Ofcom: We are a 'Nation of Media Multi-Taskers'

ENGLAND, UK: Ofcom's tenth annual Communications Market (2013) report concludes that we are a 'nation of media multi-taskers'. Ofcom, who are an independent regulator and competition authority for the UK communications industries, are always at the forefront on technological data and research.

Of which, the 436-page report backs this mantra by providing both consumers and relevant stakeholders with interesting insights into the communications market.

Cheap international calls provider Firstnumber.co.uk, were particularly interested in the key points covering telecommunication market trends. For example, the report revealed that "take-up of smartphones has continued to increase rapidly over the past year".

Highlighting that over half of all adults, 51 percent, claim to own a mobile phone. Additionally, "one in five adults say they would miss their mobile most if it were taken away". This equated to 20 percent of respondents, who stated they would miss their mobile the most. A figure that has doubled since 2005.

A spokesperson from Firstnumber.co.uk comments: "There were many terms used throughout the report that will be new to many people. The reference to 'media meshing' and 'media stacking' are definitely new phrases that help provide greater definition to different activities that take place when watching TV, and general media multi-tasking."

According to the report, a quarter of UK adults are regularly 'media mashing'. This involves talking on the phone or texting about the content being watched on TV. Whereas, 49 per cent of people use their smartphones and tablets to carry out completely unrelated tasks whilst watching TV, known as 'media stacking'.

The spokesperson continued, "The report suitably concludes that, what was once known as a traditional living room format, has been changing over the recent years and can now be considered as a 'digital media hub'."