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A Denmark-based citizen has been found guilty of sharing sexually explicit segments from protected movies and TV series on the online site Reddit.

According to a police report obtained by BBC News, the anonymous individual shared 347 video excerpts of explicit content in a subreddit he managed, which were then viewed 4.2 million-plus times.

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

Legal analysts explain the man was prosecuted under a rarely-used provision in Danish copyright law, with the court ruling that by taking the scenes out of their original context, the man had damaged the performers' "moral rights".

He has additionally been found guilty of distributing more than 25 terabytes of protected data.

From spring 2022 to May 2023, the man known as "KlammereFyr" on Reddit uploaded adult clips including over 100 actresses.

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

According to the Denmark's copyright protection group the Rights Alliance, his subreddit had more than 6,000 subscribers and participants were encouraged to request excerpts of particular performers.

In 2023, advocates filed the incident to the authorities on behalf of the impacted actors, directors and production companies, which led to the subreddit being shut down.

One actress, one of the performers whose explicit scenes were shared in the community, told Danish broadcasters at the time she believed there was a distinction between being seen naked in a film and being shown on Reddit.

The actress said the posts amounted to "exploitation".

'An important signal'

The defendant was detained in fall 2024 and admitted 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" message "that violations of artists' entitlements have consequences".

The verdict is viewed as unprecedented in the country for its use of the "moral rights" section of the Danish Copyright Act, which states an creator's work cannot be used in a manner which infringes upon their standing.

Copyright law specialist a legal scholar told BBC News the legal matter was "unusual" for its focus on the damage to the dignity of an performer, rather than to them financially.

How the case could affect nations abroad is uncertain.

But she said there may be "an increasing number of these actions" in the future with the growth of AI, where "the integrity of an individual's work might be compromised with greater ease".