Tom Petty [ tickets ]'s plan to allow free Internet MP3 downloads of the lead-off track to his upcoming album Echo was short-lived after his label, Warner Brothers Records, stepped in and halted the offering last week after just two days of availability.

According to a Billboard report, more than 150,000 copies of Free Girl Now were downloaded from the MP3.com web site before downloads were halted at 9 p.m. on March 3rd. The single became available online March 1st, and a press announcement indicated Petty's support for the distribution.

MP3 encoding of music files makes it possible to shrink file size significantly without significantly degrading sound quality. The process makes it possible to create files that can be easily downloaded online and copied at home in near-CD quality, a point that is at the heart of record industry opposition to the format.

Petty and the Heartbreakers wrap up their seven-night stand at San Francisco's Fillmore on Tuesday (3/16). Two television appearances have been booked surrounding the April 13th release of their new album Echo. The band will perform April 10th on Saturday Night Live and April 13th on Late Night with David Letterman.