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A Danish citizen has been found guilty of sharing nude scenes from protected films and television shows on the social media site Reddit.

According to a law enforcement document obtained by media outlets, the anonymous man shared 347 video excerpts of explicit scenes in a Reddit group he managed, which were then viewed 4.2 million times.

Danish authorities confirm he has been handed a seven-month suspended sentence for copyright infringement.

Experts explain the man was charged under a rarely-used clause in Danish intellectual property legislation, with the judge ruling that by removing the footage out of their intended setting, the accused had harmed the performers' "ethical entitlements".

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

From March 2022 to May 2023, the man using the alias "KlammereFyr" on Reddit uploaded adult scenes including over 100 actresses.

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

Per the Danish copyright protection organization The Rights Alliance (TRA), his online community had more than 6,000 members and users were prompted to request clips of particular performers.

In last year, advocates filed the case to the police on behalf of the impacted artists, filmmakers and production companies, which led to the forum being closed down.

Andrea Vagn Jensen, among the performers whose explicit scenes were circulated in the group, told Danish broadcasters at the period she felt there was a difference between appearing unclothed in a movie and being shown on Reddit.

The actress stated the uploads constituted "abuse".

'An important signal'

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

In a statement after the verdict, the head of the Rights Alliance Maria Fredenslund remarked the outcome sent an "important" message "indicating infringements of creators' rights have consequences".

The ruling is viewed as unique in Denmark for its use of the "moral rights" section of the national copyright law, which states an artist's creation cannot be used in a way which infringes upon their reputation.

Intellectual property expert Dr Alina Trapova informed BBC News the case was "rare" for its emphasis on the damage to the integrity of an artist, rather than to them financially.

How the ruling could affect nations abroad is unclear.

But she added there may be "an increasing number of such cases" in the coming years with the advancement of artificial intelligence, where "the integrity of one's creative output might be tempered with with greater ease".