Apple accused of exploiting Whitney Houston’s death by raising album price

On the sad news that legendary pop diva Whitney Houston passed away Saturday night, fans flocked to iTunes to purchase her music, sending her albums to the tops of the music service's charts.

But according to some fans, there were corporate masterminds at work who were seeking to bank on the star's death.

The Mail Online reports that fans are accusing Apple of increasing the price on Whitney Houston's Ultimate Collection album. It says that the 1997 album quickly went from £3 ($4.74 CAD) to £7.99 ($12.62 CAD) on the UK iTunes store.

According to Digital Spy, however, the blame for the price hike should actually be aimed at record label Sony Music. The story says that Sony Music raised the price of the album around 4:00 a.m. PST on Sunday, about 12 hours after Houston was pronounced dead.

The Guardian reports that after Sony Music learned of the singer's death, they reviewed Houston's back catalogue and decided to lift the wholesale price on the album.

A source in The Guardian said that the move wasn't a 'cynical' one, but was actually correcting the incorrect wholesale price on the album, which resulted in the price hike on iTunes.

Regardless of the reason, fan reaction to the price adjustment is vocal. One customer quoted in Digital Spy left this comment on the iTunes store's page for The Ultimate Collection: "To say I am angry is an understatement and I feel it is just a case of iTunes cashing in on the singer's death, which in my opinion is totally parasitic."

The price jump didn't seem to impact North America. Currently, the album is selling for $9.99 in Canada.