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A Denmark-based citizen has been found guilty of uploading nude segments from copyrighted movies and TV series on the online platform Reddit.

Based on a law enforcement report reviewed by BBC News, the unnamed man shared 347 clips of nude scenes in a subreddit he moderated, which were then viewed 4.2 million times.

Danish police state he has been given a 7-month deferred sentence for violating copyright laws.

Experts explain the defendant was charged under a rarely-used clause in Denmark's copyright law, with the court ruling that by taking the scenes out of their original context, the accused had harmed the artists' "ethical entitlements".

He has also been convicted of distributing more than 25 terabytes of protected digital content.

From March 2022 to May 2023, the man known as "KlammereFyr" on Reddit posted sexually explicit scenes featuring over 100 female performers.

He distributed them in the subreddit he was a administrator of.

According to the Denmark's copyright protection organization the Rights Alliance, his online community had more than 6,000 subscribers and users were prompted to ask for excerpts of specific performers.

In last year, advocates reported the incident to the authorities on behalf of the affected actors, directors and producers, which resulted in the forum being shut down.

Andrea Vagn Jensen, among the actresses whose explicit content were circulated in the group, explained to Danish media at the time she felt there was a difference between appearing unclothed in a movie and appearing on Reddit.

The performer said the posts amounted to "exploitation".

'A significant signal'

The man was detained in September 2024 and admitted culpable to the allegations recently.

In a statement following the verdict, TRA head Maria Fredenslund said the decision sent an "significant" signal "that violations of creators' entitlements has repercussions".

The ruling is viewed as unprecedented in Denmark for its use of the "moral rights" section of the Danish Copyright Act, which states an artist's work cannot be used in a way which violates their reputation.

Copyright law expert Dr Alina Trapova told BBC News the case was "unusual" for its focus on the harm to the dignity of an performer, rather than to them economically.

The extent to which the case could affect other countries is uncertain.

But she added there may be "more and more of these actions" in the coming years with the advancement of AI, where "the sanctity of an individual's work might be compromised much more easily".