Danish national individual receives suspended sentence for distributing explicit movie clips on Reddit

A Denmark-based citizen has been found guilty of uploading nude scenes from protected films and TV series on the online site Reddit.

According to a law enforcement document reviewed by media outlets, the anonymous individual shared 347 video excerpts of nude content in a Reddit group he moderated, which were then viewed 4.2 million times.

Danish authorities confirm he has been given a seven-month deferred jail term for copyright infringement.

Experts explain the man was charged under a rarely-used provision in Danish intellectual property legislation, with the court ruling that by taking the scenes out of their original context, the accused had damaged the performers' "moral rights".

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

From spring 2022 to mid-2023, the user using the alias "the pseudonym KlammereFyr" on Reddit uploaded sexually explicit clips including over 100 actresses.

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

According to the Denmark's copyright protection group the Rights Alliance, his subreddit had more than 6,000 members and users were encouraged to ask for clips of particular performers.

In last year, campaigners reported the incident to the authorities on behalf of the affected actors, directors and producers, which resulted in the subreddit being shut down.

Andrea Vagn Jensen, among the performers whose nude scenes were circulated in the community, explained to local media at the period she felt there was a difference between appearing unclothed in a movie and being shown on Reddit.

The actress stated the uploads constituted "abuse".

'A significant signal'

The man was detained in fall 2024 and pleaded guilty to the allegations recently.

In a statement after the verdict, the head of the Rights Alliance Maria Fredenslund said the outcome sent an "significant" signal "indicating violations of artists' entitlements have consequences".

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

Copyright law specialist a legal scholar informed BBC News the case was "unusual" for its focus on the damage to the integrity of an artist, rather than to them financially.

How the ruling could influence other countries is uncertain.

But she said there may be "more and more of such cases" in the future with the growth of artificial intelligence, where "the integrity of one's work might be compromised much more easily".