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

Based on a police document reviewed by media outlets, the unnamed man posted 347 video excerpts of nude scenes in a Reddit group he moderated, which were then viewed 4.2 million-plus times.

The country's authorities state he has been handed a seven-month deferred jail term for copyright infringement.

Legal analysts explain the man was prosecuted under a rarely-used clause 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 additionally been convicted of sharing more than 25 terabytes of protected data.

From spring 2022 to mid-2023, the man using the alias "KlammereFyr" on Reddit posted adult scenes featuring over 100 actresses.

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

Per the Danish anti-piracy group the Rights Alliance, his online community had more than 6,000 members and users were encouraged to ask for excerpts of particular performers.

In last year, advocates filed the case to the authorities on behalf of the affected artists, directors and producers, which led to the subreddit being shut down.

Andrea Vagn Jensen, one of the actresses whose explicit content were circulated in the group, explained to Danish media at the period she believed there was a difference between appearing naked in a movie and appearing on Reddit.

The actress stated the posts amounted to "exploitation".

'A significant message'

The defendant was arrested in September 2024 and pleaded guilty to the allegations last month.

In a statement following the verdict, the head of the Rights Alliance Maria Fredenslund remarked the decision sent an "significant" signal "indicating infringements of artists' entitlements has repercussions".

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

Intellectual property expert Dr Alina Trapova informed BBC News the legal matter was "unusual" for its focus on the harm to the dignity of an performer, rather than to them economically.

How the ruling could influence other countries is unclear.

But she said there may be "more and more of such cases" in the future with the advancement of artificial intelligence, where "the sanctity of an individual's creative output might be compromised with greater ease".