The Walking Dead has pushed Game of Thrones from the iron throne of most pirated TV show of 2018.
The blog, dedicated to reporting news on file sharing, annually compiles a list of most sought-after and illegally downloaded and shared TV series.
The zombie drama series – which airs in South Africa on FOX (DStv 125 / StarSat 131 / Cell C black 201) – pushed past Game of Thrones seen on M-Net (DStv 101). GOT has held the top spot of most downloaded TV episodes under torrenting pirates for 6 years in a row and completely dropped off the Top 10 list in 2018.
An easy explanation for this is that Game of Thrones didn’t have any new episodes in 2018 but will likely reclaim its top torrent spot at the end of this year when the 8th and final season of the dragon and White Walkers fantasy series starts within months.
Not making the Top 10 in 2018, it doesn’t mean that the fantastical show based on George R.R Martin’s books doesn’t remain hugely popular. “Game of Thrones torrents remain the most sought-after season bundles on torrent sites,” says TorrentFreak.
Vikings – which can be seen on Netflix, M-Net and Showmax jumped from 8th to 4th place – and the new superhero drama series Titans (which is also available on Netflix), claiming the 5th spot. Arrow (10th in 2017) jumped to 6th place, Supernatural is 7th, Westworld 8th, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow 9th and Suits 10th – all seen on M-Net.
“Episodes of The Walking Dead are downloaded millions of times,” says TorrentFreak. “Apart from the change at the top, there are a few small changes. Most of the entries in the top ten have been featured in the list at least once before in previous years. Titans is the best-ranked newcomer in fifth place.”
TorrentFreak compiles its annual Top 10 ranking by combing through statistics reported by public BitTorrent trackers and the DHT network.