In May, the Copenhagen City Court handed down a verdict in a case involving the systematic and illegal sharing of copyrighted newspaper articles. The owner and director of the media agency PressConnect has been sentenced to 60 days of suspended prison and a fine of 25,000 kroner for gross violation of copyright. In addition, he and the company must pay the costs of the case.
The case stems from a complaint filed by the Rights Alliance in August 2022 on behalf of the Danish Journalists’ Association – Media & Communication (DJ) and Danish Media.
According to the indictment, which PressConnect has now been convicted of, the media agency illegally produced and forwarded at least 650 newspaper articles to customers via email between 2018 and 2020. Of these, 194 articles originated from the media’s paid universes. The articles were forwarded to a total of 2,845 recipients at 19 customers without the consent of the rights holders and without payment for use.
The case began when DJ made the Rights Alliance aware of PressConnect’s activities and forwarded documentation on how articles were systematically copied and shared with third parties as part of a media monitoring service.
Media monitoring is legal when it is carried out on the basis of agreements with the relevant rights holders. However, in this case, there were no permits or agreements with the media and journalists concerned.
The case has been filed by the Section for Rights Protection under the NSK (Denmark’s National Unit for Serious Crime) , which investigates and prosecutes cases of infringement of intellectual property rights.
The owner and director of PressConnect has requested time to consider whether to appeal the verdict to the High Court.
Why it matters
“The judgment sends an important signal that the systematic sharing of copyrighted content without consent is not a trivial matter, but a serious violation of copyright,” said the director of the Rights Alliance, Maria Fredenslund. “Copyright is a fundamental prerequisite for the production of journalism, media content and other creative works. Therefore, it is crucial to have clear signals from the authorities – including the police and prosecutors – that copyright also applies in the digital economy, and that illegal exploitation of creative content has consequences,” she said.
Further reading
Verdict in case of illegal sharing of newspaper articles: Media agency convicted of gross violation of copyright. Press release. May 20, 2026. Rettighedsalliancen (Danish Rights Alliance)
