It turns out that Fox’s assumption is right. We decided to look into the download locations of one of the most popular Prison Break torrents and found that, based on a sample of more than 250,000 downloads, most downloaders are located in Europe.

In our sample, which represents approximately 10% of the total downloads this week, the show was most downloaded in Poland (12%). UK and France were in second and third place respectively, followed by Canada and The Netherlands. The US was sixth in the list with only 4% of the total downloads, and Greece, Spain, Australia and Brazil complete the top 10.

As we have said before, availability seems to the key issue why people turn to BitTorrent. Non-US Prison Break fans sometimes have to wait for weeks or even months before the show airs on TV in their country, and many of them are not that patient, or willing to torture themselves. Until this problem is addressed, we’re not likely to see a decrease in TV-show downloads from BitTorrent.

The 4% US downloaders that preferred to get the show via BitTorrent instead of streaming it online probably did so because they wanted to watch it on their TV or get a higher quality copy – streaming isn’t all that. Both Fox and Hulu, the two sites that offer Prison Break streams have not published any numbers, so it’s hard to compare the number of US downloaders (~100.000) with the US streamers.

We do have a new TV-torrent download chart, with plenty of newcomers. So, let’s take a look at the 10 most downloaded shows this week. The data for the weekly download chart is collected by TorrentFreak from a representative sample of BitTorrent sites and is for informational and educational reference only.

Top Downloads August 31 – September 07

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing and anonymous VPN services.

* Interview with the man behind the BitTorrent Song

* A day in the life of a Tv-Torrent geek

* New Ipod Torrent Site

* Port Washington, another independent movie release on BitTorrent

* Click and view, article on BitTorrent and TV

* HBO not happy with TV-Torrents

* Teenager Indicted On Online Piracy Charges

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing and anonymous VPN services.

From the Fox site:

8. Can I get tapes of FOX Network Primetime Shows sent to me?

ANSWER:
The FOX Network does not provide nor sell videos of any of shows, specials or movies that air on the Network.

Our recommendation is to ask co-workers, friends, family and neighbors for anyone who may have taped off-the-air the show you are looking for.

Source: TorrentFreak, for the latest info on copyright, file-sharing and anonymous VPN services.