Anyone caught breaching copyright by downloading films and music from the internet will face large fines and could even be banned from going online under proposed new laws.
A three-strike system will hand out formal warnings to offenders - while further illegal downloads could then prompt copyright owners to apply for up to $15,000 compensation from the user.
The copyright owner can also apply to the user's internet service provider to have the customer's internet connection cut off for up to six months.
The ban can happen only after a copyright owner, such as a media company, applies for a district court order for the internet service provider to suspend the user's internet access.
The Copyright (Infringing File Sharing) Amendment Bill was introduced to Parliament this week and is a replacement to last year's controversial proposals that would have banned downloaders from ever having an internet connection.
The former Bill did not include a process that allowed users to refute a copyright owner's allegations.
Under the new law, internet users are able to take their case to the Copyright Tribunal, for free.
Internet bloggers say although the new Bill is an improvement, it should not be passed into law.
Creative Freedom NZ director Bronywn Holloway-Smith said the amendment to the Bill was an improvement, but the internet termination was "quite extreme".
A fine was an adequate punishment, she said.
Dozens of bloggers from across the country are planning to take their blogs down on Monday morning in an "internet blackout" protest.
Ms Holloway-Smith also outlined a flaw within the Bill, with anyone disconnected from an internet service provider free to sign up with another provider.
Justice Minister Simon Power stressed that the Bill's main purpose was to protect copyright owners from being ripped off by people continuously downloading and sharing files.
"Online copyright infringement is a problem for everyone; but especially for the creative industry, which has experienced significant declines in revenue, as file sharing has become more prevalent," he said.
"This Bill is the result of extensive consultation with stakeholders and is an important step in addressing a complex issue."
Ongoing issues with people downloading stacks of movies, music and other software - and then distributing them to other internet users - was something that was having a "negative and cumulative effect on New Zealand's music, film and software industries", the Bill reads.
