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A Danish citizen has been convicted of sharing sexually explicit scenes from protected films and television shows on the online platform Reddit.

According to a police report reviewed by media outlets, the anonymous man shared 347 video excerpts of nude scenes in a Reddit group he moderated, which were then watched 4.2 million-plus times.

Danish police state he has been given a 7-month deferred jail term for copyright infringement.

Experts explain the man was charged under a seldom-invoked clause in Danish intellectual property legislation, with the court ruling that by removing the footage out of their original context, the accused had harmed the artists' "moral rights".

He has additionally been found guilty of distributing more than 25 TB of copyrighted digital content.

From spring 2022 to May 2023, the user known as "KlammereFyr" on Reddit uploaded adult scenes featuring over 100 actresses.

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

According to the Denmark's anti-piracy group The Rights Alliance (TRA), his online community had more than 6,000 subscribers and participants were prompted to request clips of particular performers.

In 2023, advocates reported the case to the authorities on behalf of the impacted artists, filmmakers and production companies, which resulted in the forum being closed down.

One actress, among the actresses whose nude scenes were circulated in the community, explained to Danish broadcasters at the time she felt there was a distinction between being seen naked in a film and appearing on Reddit.

The performer said the posts constituted "exploitation".

'An important signal'

The man was detained in fall 2024 and admitted guilty to the allegations recently.

In a comment following the verdict, the head of the Rights Alliance the organization's leader said the outcome sent an "significant" message "that violations of artists' entitlements has consequences".

The ruling is viewed as unprecedented in Denmark for its application of the "moral rights" clause of the national copyright law, which specifies an creator's creation cannot be utilized in a way which violates their reputation.

Intellectual property expert a legal scholar told BBC News the legal matter was "rare" for its focus on the damage to the dignity of an artist, rather than to them economically.

The extent to which the ruling could influence other countries is unclear.

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