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A Danish citizen has been convicted of uploading sexually explicit segments from copyrighted movies and television shows on the online site Reddit.

Based on a law enforcement document reviewed by BBC News, the unnamed man posted 347 video excerpts of nude scenes in a subreddit he moderated, which were then viewed 4.2 million times.

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

Experts explain the defendant was prosecuted under a seldom-invoked clause in Denmark's intellectual property legislation, with the judge ruling that by taking the scenes out of their original context, the accused had damaged the artists' "ethical entitlements".

He has also been convicted of distributing more than 25 TB of protected digital content.

From March 2022 to mid-2023, the user known as "KlammereFyr" on Reddit uploaded sexually explicit scenes including over 100 female performers.

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

Per the Denmark's anti-piracy group the Rights Alliance, his online community had more than 6,000 members and users were encouraged to request excerpts of specific performers.

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

One actress, among the performers whose nude scenes were shared in the community, explained to local broadcasters at the period she believed there was a difference between being seen unclothed in a film and appearing on Reddit.

The performer stated the uploads amounted to "exploitation".

'A significant message'

The defendant was detained in fall 2024 and pleaded guilty to the allegations last month.

In a comment following the ruling, the head of the Rights Alliance Maria Fredenslund said the outcome sent an "important" signal "indicating violations of artists' rights has consequences".

The verdict is viewed as unique in the country for its use of the "moral rights" section of the national copyright law, which states an artist's work cannot be utilized in a manner which infringes upon their reputation.

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

How the case could influence nations abroad is uncertain.

But she added there may be "an increasing number of these actions" in the coming years with the advancement of artificial intelligence, where "the sanctity of an individual's work might be compromised with greater ease".