Binge-watching television shows is becoming the most common way to take in our favourite programs, with many viewers shunning their families to do it alone, new figures suggest.
Research by telecoms firm ARRIS found that 67 per cent of the UK admits to binge-watching a TV show, with the average viewer doing so for more than three hours a week.
More than three fifths (61 per cent) choose to do it alone, taking advantage of the increasingly personal nature of many online streaming and catch-up services.
According to ARRIS, data on downloads of digital boxsets from the Sky TV Store suggested that subscribers will spend nine days watching US comedy Modern Family this winter, and six days watching fantasy drama Game Of Thrones.
About six per cent of those surveyed said they binge-watched every day.
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Sandy Howe, senior vice president of global marketing at ARRIS, said: "Binge-watching very quickly has grown into a very popular way to consume media, and even more quickly has become a solitary activity.
"This isn't just a passing trend in TV, this is the new normal, and it is fundamentally different."
Howe said it suggested a very different TV future, "in which 'prime time' is whenever consumers want it, for as long as they choose, and increasingly they're choosing to enjoy it alone".
The rise of streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon Fire TV, alongside download and catch-up options from major broadcasters, has increased the availability of bulk numbers of episodes of major TV shows.
Statistics from Netlfix published earlier this year claimed users watched more than 10 billion hours of content every month.
