For many Game of Thrones fans, the temptation to read spoilers is constant, and sometimes threatens to intrude on the shock and surprise we tune in for each week. Related to spoilers is speculation, fans developing theories about what may or may not happen. But when does one become the other? The networks behind two of the biggest shows on television, AMC’s The Walking Dead and HBO’s Game of Thrones, are struggling with this question, and are taking two decidedly different approaches to answering it.

The Walking Dead recently ended it’s sixth season on a major cliffhanger, as the newly introduced villain Negan killed one of the primary cast members. Fans were left to speculate, debate, and argue about which cast member it was. If you thought that AMC might enjoy this speculation, you’d be dead wrong. In fact, it threatened Walking Dead fan site The Spoiling Dead with legal action should it post a prediction about the cliffhanger that turned out to be correct. Here’s how the website moderators put it:

If we post our Lucille Victim prediction and we’re right, AMC says they will sue us. Their stance is that making such a prediction would be considered copyright infringement.

The harassment didn’t stop there.

AMC has filed several wrongful DMCA notices against us with full knowledge that we could not file counter-notices, hired investigators to intimidate our members, and threatened our local members with arrest, among other questionable acts. We’re also pretty sure they had something to do with the DOS attack on our site just before the finale last season. They have exhibited every quality of a bully pounding its chest.

They also accused AMC of “harassing us for four days now by contacting our homes, our family members and our employers.”





HBO appears to have taken a more level-headed approach to spoilers, only attacking those it felt were leaking official footage or information. Take the case of a Spanish super-fan who goes by the name of Dr. Jose Senaris. During the early part of Season 6, Senaris posted YouTube videos in which he appeared in a mask and made predictions about what would happen in future episodes, predictions that appeared too accurate to be mere guesswork. Senaris later confirmed that he was getting information from an unnamed source, but fought HBO’s subsequent DMCA copyright claim on the basis that his videos didn’t contain unreleased footage from the show and that, for his most recent video, at least, he hadn’t specified whether his information had come from an inside source. From a video he made about the fallout:

They think that me dressed as a Mexican wrestler talking about predictions for chapter 3 in Game of Thrones is their property, is copyrighted material that belongs to me!

Senaris’ videos were taken down, but it seems that HBO agreed that its claims were flimsy, as they were soon restored. HBO doesn’t seem as certain as AMC regarding to what extent speculation constitutes copyright infringement, and to out knowledge, hasn’t engaged in any of the underhanded tactics credited to AMC above.

The question remains: when does speculation turn into spoilers? Fans can correctly guess many of the plot points from shows simply using their imaginations—one correctly guessed the meaning of Hodor’s name years before it was revealed. Speculation is part of what makes many of these shows great, as it allows fans to continue to enjoy their favorite characters long after an episode has aired. Considering how much buzz it drives, it might be in networks’ best interests to actively encourage it, or at least to let it run unchecked. Actively threatening your most die-hard fans with legal action hardly seems like a solid marketing plan, but both HBO and AMC have dabbled with it.

The question becomes even more interesting when you consider that both shows, and many others, are based off of written source material. Fans of George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire books knew that Jon Snow was headed for a good stabbing at the end of Season 5, but you would be hard-pressed to find a fan who didn’t tune in to see it happen. Hopefully, networks will come to understand that speculation is a natural by-product of creating successful shows, and allow fans to indulge themselves year-round.

h/t Vox