HBO’s “Game of Thrones” is the most pirated show on television. How does the cable network feel about that? Not bad, actually. The show’s second season recently experienced record-setting DVD sales for the network, even as it was 2012’s most illegally downloaded show. According to HBO programming president Michael Lombardo, this is viewed as a positive, especially since it doesn’t seem to adversely affect sales.

“I probably shouldn’t be saying this, but it is a compliment of sorts,” Lombardo said. “The demand is there. And it certainly didn’t negatively impact the DVD sales. [Piracy is] something that comes along with having a wildly successful show on a subscription network.”

He confirmed that “Game of Thrones” is HBO’s top money earner. “If you look at aggregate of international and DVD sales — which are the two revenue streams we look at since we’re not selling it domestically on another platform — yes, absolutely, in terms of shows we have on now,” he said.

Although HBO remains staunchly anti-piracy, he’s sure to note, it seems one of his largest concerns regarding illegal downloads of the show is quality control. “One of my worries is about the copies [downloaders are] seeing,” Lombardo said. “The production values of this show are so incredible. So I’m hoping that in the purloined different generation of cuts that the show is holding up.”

“According to one estimate, [the show’s] second season finale was illegally downloaded 4.3 million times worldwide last year,” reports Entertainment Weekly. “That’s quite a large number considering the show averages around 10 million viewers across all HBO platforms.”