Danish national individual receives deferred sentence for posting nude film clips on the social platform Reddit
A Denmark-based man has been found guilty of uploading sexually explicit segments from protected movies and TV series on the social media platform Reddit.
Based on a police report obtained by media outlets, the unnamed individual posted 347 video excerpts of explicit content in a subreddit he managed, which were then viewed 4.2 million times.
The country's police state he has been handed a seven-month deferred sentence for copyright infringement.
Legal analysts explain the defendant was charged under a rarely-used clause in Danish intellectual property legislation, with the court finding that by taking the footage out of their original context, the man had harmed the artists' "ethical entitlements".
He has also been found guilty of distributing more than 25 terabytes of copyrighted data.
From spring 2022 to May 2023, the user known as "KlammereFyr" on Reddit uploaded sexually explicit scenes including over 100 actresses.
He shared them in the subreddit he was a moderator of.
According to the Denmark's anti-piracy organization the Rights Alliance, his online community had more than 6,000 members and participants were prompted to request clips of particular performers.
In 2023, advocates filed the incident to the authorities on behalf of the affected actors, directors and production companies, which led to the forum being closed down.
One actress, one of the performers whose nude content were shared in the community, explained to local media at the period she felt there was a distinction between appearing naked in a film and appearing on Reddit.
The actress said the posts amounted to "abuse".
'An important signal'
The man was detained in fall 2024 and pleaded culpable to the allegations last month.
In a statement after the ruling, TRA head Maria Fredenslund said the outcome sent an "important" message "that infringements of creators' entitlements has repercussions".
The verdict is considered unique in Denmark for its use of the "ethical protections" section of the Danish Copyright Act, which states an artist's work cannot be used in a way which infringes upon their reputation.
Copyright law expert a legal scholar told BBC News the case was "rare" for its focus on the harm to the dignity of an performer, rather than to them financially.
How the ruling could affect nations abroad is uncertain.
But she said there may be "more and more of these actions" in the future with the advancement of artificial intelligence, where "the integrity of an individual's creative output might be tempered with much more easily".
