Season five of Game of Thrones is undoubtedly one of the most awaited HBO series by many and for the avid torrent downloaders, many were caught by surprise when the first four episodes suddenly popped up from top torrent sites.
Among them included The Pirate Bay and Kickass Torrents, which caught everyone by surprise when the first four episodes were suddenly listed and available.
According to some sources, it was believed that the online leak originated from a reviewer who had received advanced copies of the four episodes. Once the torrents went live, it was only a matter of time before other torrent sites listed the first four episodes, eventually leading to millions of user downloads that accounted for the sudden spike and activity from torrent sites where they were available.
And while the enormous activity felt like it shattered the existing record for most simultaneous download, well, it wasn't. The honor does however remain for the same series, Game of Thrones, but for their season 4 finale.
Records show that the first 12 hours of the online leak resulted in 1.5 million downloads which swelled to at least about 7.5 million.
The leak was of course very disappointing to HBO and its subscribers. HBO Now had offered a special streaming service for Game of Thrones via Apple and Optimum Online platforms with HBO trying to help out Game of Thrones fans by giving them alternative options to watch Game of Thrones season 5.
With the online leak, fans were able to watch the advanced episodes, much sooner than those who had subscribed through HBO.
Game of Thrones is the most pirated TV show in 2014 and looks set to continue that distinction this year if the initial activity and responses for the first four episode leaks is any indication.
