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A Denmark-based man has been convicted of uploading sexually explicit scenes from protected films and TV series on the online platform Reddit.

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

Danish authorities confirm he has been handed a 7-month deferred sentence for copyright infringement.

Legal analysts explain the defendant was prosecuted under a rarely-used provision in Danish intellectual property legislation, with the court ruling that by taking the scenes out of their intended setting, the man had harmed the artists' "ethical entitlements".

He has also been found guilty of distributing more than 25 terabytes of copyrighted digital content.

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

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

Per the Denmark's anti-piracy group The Rights Alliance (TRA), his subreddit had more than 6,000 subscribers and participants were prompted to request excerpts of specific performers.

In 2023, advocates reported the case to the police on behalf of the affected actors, filmmakers and producers, which resulted in the subreddit being closed down.

Andrea Vagn Jensen, one of the performers whose nude scenes were circulated in the community, explained to local broadcasters at the period she felt there was a difference between appearing unclothed in a movie and appearing on Reddit.

The actress said the uploads constituted "abuse".

'An important signal'

The defendant was detained in fall 2024 and pleaded culpable to the charges last month.

In a statement following the verdict, TRA head Maria Fredenslund remarked the outcome sent an "significant" signal "indicating infringements of artists' entitlements has consequences".

The verdict is viewed as unprecedented in the country for its application of the "moral rights" section of the Danish Copyright Act, which specifies an artist's creation cannot be utilized in a manner which violates their standing.

Copyright law specialist Dr Alina Trapova told the media the case was "rare" for its focus on the harm to the integrity of an artist, rather than to them financially.

The extent to which the case could affect nations abroad is unclear.

But she added there may be "more and more of such cases" in the future with the growth of artificial intelligence, where "the integrity of one's creative output might be compromised with greater ease".