Late last week, the fourth episode of Game of Thrones season seven was doing the rounds on torrenting sites. As it turns out, hackers were able to get access to the episodes and have since threatened to release more them, as well as sensitive information for stars of the series, should the American network not pay the hacking group. 

In the latest development of this story, it appears as if HBO tried to pay off the hackers, with The Hollywood Reporter being sent an email from the hacking group noting that a "bug bounty payment" was on offer from HBO. 

"As a show of good faith on our side, we are willing to commit to making a bug bounty payment of $250,000 to you as soon as we can establish the necessary account and acquire bitcoin," wrote an unnamed HBO executive. 

What's most interesting about this email is that it was sent in late-July, according to Variety, which seems to indicate that it was a stalling tactic from HBO, as they tried to find any possible solutions to the hack. With the payment not being made, it looks like the hackers are looking for a bigger payout. 

Whether or not HBO do so is unclear, but given that episode four of season seven was one of the most watched in the series' history, perhaps they can shrug off the hack, as the popularity of Game of Thrones shows no signs of waning.