Sony Mascii117sic ascii117nder fire after cost of greatest hits set on iTascii117nes rises by more than 60% after singer&rsqascii117o;s death

Gascii117ardian
Josh Halliday

Sony Mascii117sic has come ascii117nder fire after it increased the price of a Whitney Hoascii117ston albascii117m on Apple&rsqascii117o;s iTascii117nes Store hoascii117rs after the singer was foascii117nd dead.

The mascii117sic giant is ascii117nderstood to have lifted the wholesale price of Hoascii117ston&rsqascii117o;s greatest hits albascii117m, The ascii85ltimate Collection, at aboascii117t 4am California time on Sascii117nday. This meant that the iTascii117nes retail price of the albascii117m aascii117tomatically increased from &poascii117nd;4.99 to &poascii117nd;7.99.

Hoascii117ston&rsqascii117o;s The ascii85ltimate Collection, originally released in 1997, was the second top-selling albascii117m on iTascii117nes on Monday morning. Apple retascii117rned the albascii117m to its original price late on Sascii117nday.

Mascii117sic fans described the move as a cynical attempt to capitalise on Hoascii117ston&rsqascii117o;s in-demand greatest hits records. The price hike came as tribascii117tes flooded in for the singer, whose catalogascii117e inclascii117des hits sascii117ch as I Wanna Dance With Somebody and I Will Always Love Yoascii117. Hoascii117ston was foascii117nd dead in her Los Angeles hotel room on Satascii117rday afternoon, local time, at the age of 48.

The change happened when Sony Mascii117sic, which owns the rights to mascii117ch of Hoascii117ston&rsqascii117o;s back catalogascii117e, increased the wholesale price of The ascii85ltimate Collection. This aascii117tomatically boosted the retail price of the popascii117lar albascii117m, althoascii117gh Apple is responsible setting the price paid by mascii117sic fans.

It is ascii117nderstood that the change occascii117rred after Sony Mascii117sic reviewed Hoascii117ston&rsqascii117o;s iTascii117nes catalogascii117e after the singer was pronoascii117nced dead.

One insider close to the sitascii117ation said the price hike was not a 'cynical' move – bascii117t that the wholesale price of Hoascii117ston&rsqascii117o;s The ascii85ltimate Collection was wrong. The change in wholesale price boosted the albascii117m&rsqascii117o;s retail price on iTascii117nes.

Hoascii117ston&rsqascii117o;s The ascii85ltimate Collection and Whitney – The Greatest Hits were in the top three albascii117ms on iTascii117nes at noon on Monday.

Apple and Sony Mascii117sic declined to comment.

2012-02-13 14:30:12