🔗 Share this article

A Denmark-based man has been found guilty of sharing nude scenes from protected films and TV series on the social media platform Reddit.

According to a police document reviewed by BBC News, the unnamed man shared 347 video excerpts of explicit scenes in a subreddit he managed, which were then viewed 4.2 million-plus times.

Danish police state he has been handed a seven-month suspended sentence for violating copyright laws.

Legal analysts explain the defendant was prosecuted under a rarely-used clause in Denmark's copyright law, with the court finding that by removing the footage out of their original context, the accused had damaged the performers' "moral rights".

He has additionally been found guilty of distributing more than 25 TB of protected digital content.

From March 2022 to May 2023, the user known as "KlammereFyr" on Reddit uploaded sexually explicit clips including over 100 actresses.

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

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

In 2023, advocates reported the incident to the police on behalf of the affected actors, directors and production companies, which resulted in the forum being shut down.

Andrea Vagn Jensen, one of the performers whose nude scenes were circulated in the community, explained to Danish broadcasters at the time she believed there was a difference between being seen naked in a film and being shown on Reddit.

The actress said the uploads constituted "exploitation".

'A significant message'

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

In a statement following the verdict, the head of the Rights Alliance Maria Fredenslund remarked the outcome sent an "significant" message "that violations of creators' rights have repercussions".

The ruling is considered unprecedented in Denmark for its use of the "moral rights" section of the Danish Copyright Act, which states an creator's creation cannot be used in a way which infringes upon their reputation.

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

How the ruling could affect other countries is uncertain.

But she added there may be "an increasing number of such cases" in the future with the growth of artificial intelligence, where "the integrity of an individual's creative output might be compromised much more easily".