Nearly two thirds of the 2,000 people in the UK who were questioned said they would use MIM to chat via a TV set or games console if available.

“Two thirds of respondents - 58 per cent - stated that if available they would use an MIM service to chat to their friends on their TV or even via their gaming console,” a statement from mobile IM company Colibria said.

“This desire to be constantly in touch with peers shows just how converged services must accelerate to meet what is already a growing demand from consumers.”

As well as getting chatty through the telly, users would also be more likely to keep in touch using mobile messaging if they could see information such as their friends’ moods, availability and location.

Eighty per cent of mobile users interested in MIM said they’d be more likely to chat if they could see their contacts’ “presence information”.

“The survey highlighted what is being increasingly known as ‘contextual communication’, where consumers are actively using technology to express themselves as a direct extension of their personality,” an official Colibria statement said.

“Today’s consumers insist on customising their profiles, which started with social networking sites such as Facebook, by continually updating their status, availability, mood and even interests, to drive enhanced levels of communication.”

Just under half (43 per cent) of those surveyed admitted they would update their presence information on their mobile every day, with 17 per cent updating it a few times a day and five per cent constantly changing it.

“Our survey shows that British mobile users want the ability to develop and express their identities through their mobile phone, regardless of where they are or what they’re doing – something we call ‘rich profile’,” said Matt Hooper, European VP of marketing at Colibria.

“In addition to this, mobile users want a combination of operator and internet-based services to help them run their lives, which points to a greater focus on creating a fully interconnected world.”

The poll was carried out by YouGov and questioned 2,022 adults between 29 April and 1 May 2008.