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A Denmark-based man has been found guilty of uploading nude scenes from protected movies and television shows on the online site Reddit.

According to a law enforcement document obtained by media outlets, the anonymous man shared 347 clips of explicit content in a Reddit group he moderated, which were then watched 4.2 million times.

The country's authorities state he has been handed a 7-month suspended sentence for copyright infringement.

Legal analysts say the defendant was prosecuted under a rarely-used provision in Danish copyright law, with the court finding that by removing the scenes out of their original context, the accused had harmed the artists' "moral rights".

He has additionally been convicted of distributing more than 25 terabytes of copyrighted digital content.

From spring 2022 to May 2023, the man using the alias "the pseudonym KlammereFyr" on Reddit uploaded adult clips featuring over 100 actresses.

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

According to the Denmark's copyright protection organization The Rights Alliance (TRA), his subreddit had more than 6,000 subscribers and participants were encouraged to ask for clips of specific performers.

In 2023, advocates reported the case to the authorities on behalf of the impacted actors, directors and production companies, which led to the forum being closed down.

Andrea Vagn Jensen, one of the actresses whose nude content were circulated in the community, explained to Danish broadcasters at the time she felt there was a distinction between being seen unclothed in a film and appearing on Reddit.

The actress said the posts amounted to "exploitation".

'A significant signal'

The man was detained in fall 2024 and admitted culpable to the charges last month.

In a statement following the ruling, the head of the Rights Alliance the organization's leader said the outcome sent an "important" message "indicating infringements of artists' entitlements has consequences".

The verdict is considered unprecedented in the country for its application of the "ethical protections" clause of the Danish Copyright Act, which states an artist's creation cannot be utilized in a manner which violates their standing.

Copyright law expert a legal scholar told the media the case was "rare" for its focus on the damage to the integrity of an artist, rather than to them economically.

How the case could affect nations abroad is uncertain.

But she added there may be "more and more of such cases" in the future with the growth of AI, where "the sanctity of an individual's work might be tempered with much more easily".