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A Danish citizen has been convicted of sharing nude scenes from copyrighted films and television shows on the online site Reddit.

Based on a law enforcement document reviewed by BBC News, the unnamed man posted 347 clips of explicit scenes in a Reddit group he managed, which were then watched 4.2 million times.

The country's authorities confirm he has been given a 7-month suspended jail term for violating copyright laws.

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

He has also been found guilty of sharing more than 25 terabytes of copyrighted data.

From spring 2022 to May 2023, the man using the alias "KlammereFyr" on Reddit posted adult clips including over 100 female performers.

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

Per the Denmark's anti-piracy organization the Rights Alliance, his online community had more than 6,000 subscribers and participants were encouraged to request excerpts of particular actors.

In last year, advocates filed the case to the police on behalf of the impacted artists, filmmakers and producers, which resulted in the forum being closed down.

One actress, among the performers whose explicit scenes were shared in the community, explained to Danish media at the period she believed there was a distinction between appearing naked in a film and appearing on Reddit.

The actress said the posts amounted to "exploitation".

'An important message'

The defendant was detained in fall 2024 and pleaded guilty to the charges recently.

In a comment after the verdict, the head of the Rights Alliance Maria Fredenslund said the outcome sent an "important" signal "that infringements of artists' rights has consequences".

The ruling is considered unprecedented in the country for its use of the "ethical protections" section of the national copyright law, which specifies an creator's work cannot be used in a manner which violates their reputation.

Intellectual property specialist Dr Alina Trapova told the media the case was "unusual" for its focus on the harm to the integrity of an artist, rather than to them economically.

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

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