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A Danish citizen has been found guilty of uploading nude segments from protected movies and television shows on the social media platform Reddit.

According to a law enforcement document reviewed by BBC News, the unnamed individual shared 347 video excerpts of explicit scenes in a Reddit group he managed, which were then viewed 4.2 million times.

The country's authorities state he has been given a 7-month suspended sentence for violating copyright laws.

Legal analysts say the defendant was charged under a rarely-used provision in Denmark's copyright law, with the court ruling that by removing the scenes out of their original context, the man had harmed the performers' "moral rights".

He has additionally been convicted of distributing more than 25 terabytes of copyrighted data.

From spring 2022 to May 2023, the user using the alias "KlammereFyr" on Reddit uploaded adult clips featuring over 100 actresses.

He shared them in the forum he was a administrator of.

According to the Denmark's copyright protection group the Rights Alliance, his subreddit had more than 6,000 subscribers and participants were prompted to ask for clips of specific performers.

In last year, advocates reported the incident to the police on behalf of the affected artists, directors and producers, which led to the forum being closed down.

One actress, among the actresses whose explicit scenes were shared in the group, told Danish broadcasters at the period she felt there was a distinction between appearing naked in a movie and being shown on Reddit.

The actress said the posts constituted "exploitation".

'A significant signal'

The man was arrested in September 2024 and pleaded guilty to the charges last month.

In a statement after the verdict, the head of the Rights Alliance the organization's leader remarked the decision sent an "significant" message "indicating infringements of artists' entitlements has repercussions".

The ruling is considered unprecedented in the country for its use of the "moral rights" clause of the Danish Copyright Act, which states an artist's creation cannot be utilized in a manner which violates their standing.

Copyright law expert a legal scholar told the media the case was "unusual" for its emphasis on the damage to the dignity of an artist, rather than to them economically.

How the ruling could influence other countries is unclear.

But she said there may be "more and more of these actions" in the coming years with the growth of AI, where "the sanctity of one's creative output might be tempered with much more easily".