The United States will be hunting down foreign websites that pirate American music and movies. This move is part of a new strategy to prevent the sales of counterfeit and pirated goods at home and abroad, Vice President Joe Biden said on Tuesday.

"This is theft, clear and simple," Biden said during a meeting with Attorney General Eric Holder, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and other Cabinet officials.

"It's smash and grab, no different than a guy walking down Fifth Avenue and smashing the window at Tiffany's and reaching in and grabbing what's in the window," he added, referring to the jewelry store in New York City.

U.S. companies say that they lose billions of dollars every year because of the piracy and counterfeiting of items such as films, music and consumer goods. They also claim that the illegal trade is the reason for hundreds of thousands of lost U.S. jobs.

"It is especially critical that the United States has an effective framework for protecting creative content online and enforcing intellectual property rights in the digital environment," said Bob Pisano, interim chief executive officer at the Motion Picture Association of America.

U.S. computer and video game makers were also happy with the promise of tougher enforcement.

The National Association of Manufacturers urged the administration to focus especially on China, which it has called "ground zero" for piracy and counterfeiting.

The U.S. Trade Representative's office has been campaigning for years the closure of websites in Russia, China and other countries that sell pirated American music and films.