to ask... What does watching TV mean?

[LinkyPlease]

Do you think this means watching stuff playing on a screen, or do you reserve this term for the stuff on BBC ITV etc only?

Just wondering as when talking with friends recently I made an offhand comment about watching TV in the evening and friend said she didn't watch TV, then a minute later said something about boxsets on Netflix.

Even if the Netflix is watched on a laptop I still count this as TV, but I gather some people don't. Who is in the majority?

If you're watching tv in Netflix you are watching tv! I have a friend who goes on about never watching tv, as though she spends her evenings learning mandarin, knitting blankets for orphaned goats etc, but actually watches Netflix and amazon prime all the time.

Yes, I would use 'watching TV' to mean 'watching TV or a DVD or a recorded TV programme or film online'. Not sure what your point is, though?

I call watching TV as watching anything on a screen that's not a short you tube video. So wether it is a movie, something from Netflix, a normal TV channel, something from.catch up etc it's all TV to me whether it's on a laptop or TV screen.

But then I know someone who says they don't watch a lot of TV as they normally just watch movies. So I think it does mean different things to different people.

It's watching something at home - Sky, Netflix, Prime, whatever. It's all telly to me, whether it's on my Chromebook or the big front room TV.

Hmm. I'd probably reserve it for stuff that I actually watch on the television screen, rather than any other screen. That said, I only ever watch Netflix or Amazon Prime via the TV in any case.

DH sometimes watches films on the computer, especially if dd and I are watching something else on the TV. I'd probably say he was watching a film or on the computer - I wouldn't say he was watching TV. Same for the iPad.

I guess it works either way.
I tend to use "Tv" to cover cable, free view, satellite television etc. I'd refer to streaming services and DVDs differently - though I can't explain why.
Watching on a laptop definitely seems different.

I think some people say they don’t watch “TV” because if you ask them what soaps they watch- they won’t be able to talk about it! I’ve never experienced someone saying it as a negative- just that they won’t be able to talk to me about stuff that was on during the week or the previous evening for instance.

Agree if it’s a programme or film it’s TV. Why would you think
I’m special snowflake I don’t do TV when you are glued to another screen? These days TV is just as in demand as streaming not really much in it.

No point Emily, I've just come across this same confusion a few times and wondered if it was me being old fashioned. I still talk about videoing things etc so I thought maybe the vernacular had moved on. Friends is 2 years younger than me so may be more in touch with the youth

Thanks for opinions. It seems most people broadly agree with me maybe. It totally doesn't matter, friend wasn't being rude etc. I just wondered.