Houston Price Hike: Sony To Blame For Cashing In On Tragedy?

Following the news of Whitney Houston tragic death last weekend (February 11, 2012), the price of some of her music on iTunes was temporarily raised, causing outrage amongst fans. The obvious target of the complaint was Apple, the company that runs iTunes but in fact, media reports suggest the finger should be pointed at Sony. Sony own the rights to the singer's back catalogue, and the wholesale price will have been set by them, according to The Telegraph.

Their story states that after Whitney's passing was announced, the price of her Ultimate Collection album jumped in price from 4.99 to 7.99, which prompted fans to complain that Apple were cashing in on the singer's untimely demise. Regardless of the price hike, though, Ultimate Collection jumped to second in the UK iTunes chart and Whitney's songs took up 42 of the 200 top positions in their song chart. Neither Sony nor Apple had released an official statement on the matter at the time the Telegraph article was published.

Whitney Houston passed away on Saturday, after reportedly being found unconscious in the bath of her Beverley Hills Hilton hotel room. Attempts to resuscitate her were unsuccessful. The singer rose to fame in the 1980s after finding huge global success - notably with her debut eponymous album and the release of 'I Will Always Love You' in 1992, which spent 14 weeks at number one in the United States. Jennifer Hudson performed a version of the track at Sunday night's Grammys awards show, in tribute to Whitney.