These Were the Top 10 Illegally Downloaded TV Shows in 2015

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“Game of Thrones” has been the most-pirated TV show for four consecutive years. (HBO)

Once again, “Game of Thrones” is the No. 1 pirated show of the year.

This is the fourth consecutive year that the HBO fantasy drama has topped this list, with a huge 14.4 million downloads on BitTorrent, according to TorrentFreak.

To give you a sense of the show’s popularity on BitTorrent, there’s a difference of eight million downloads between “GoT” and the No. 2 most-downloaded series on the list, “The Walking Dead.”

“Game of Thrones” also beat TV’s most-watched show, CBS’s “The Big Bang Theory,” which is in the third-place slot.

Despite the creation of HBONow for non-cable subscribers in the past year, the prominence of “GoT” here is not a big surprise. Earlier this year, it broke an all-time record for illegal downloads when more than 258,131 users shared the same “GoT” torrent file simultaneously.

And according to TorrentFreak, illegal downloads aren’t declining at all. They’re in fact increasing, many to levels way above the traditional TV audience numbers for programs.

Which other shows have become favorites for illegal downloading? Here’s the list of 2015′s most-pirated TV shows.

10. “Suits” (USA Network)

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Estimated downloads: 2,600,000

Estimated TV viewers (US Only): 2,380,000

“The Blacklist” (NBC)

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Estimated downloads:2,900,000

Estimated TV viewers (US only): 10,110,000

8. “Supergirl” (CBS)

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Estimated downloads: 3,000,000

Estimated TV viewers (US Only): 12,960,000

7. “Vikings” (History Channel)

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Estimated downloads: 3,300,000

Estimated TV viewers (US Only): 5,010,000

6. “Mr. Robot” (USA Network)

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Estimated downloads: 3,500,000

Estimated TV viewers (US Only): 1,750,000

5. “The Flash” (The CW)

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Estimated downloads: 3,600,000

Estimated TV viewers (US Only): 4,010,000

4. “Arrow” (The CW)

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Estimated downloads: 3,900,000

Estimated TV viewers (US Only): 3,920,000

3. “The Big Bang Theory” (CBS)

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Estimated downloads: 4,400,000

Estimated TV viewers (US Only): 18,300,000

2. “The Walking Dead” (AMC)

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Estimated downloads: 6,900,000

Estimated TV viewers (US Only): 15,780,000

1. “Game of Thrones” (HBO)

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Estimated downloads: 14,400,000

Estimated TV viewers (US Only): 8,110,000

*TorrentFreak’s numbers are based on data provided by several sources, including public BitTorrent trackers. Online streaming and downloads for file-hosting services are not included.

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