Whitney Price Hike ‘Human Error’

The sudden price increase on Whitney Houston albums on iTunes was the result of human error, according to her record label.

Sony says the late singer’s product was “mistakenly mispriced” and the mistake was rectified as soon as it was noticed.
The company also apologised for “any offense caused” but hasn’t said if it will refund those who paid too much.

The price of Houston’s The Ultimate Collection soared from £4.99 ($7.84) to £7.99 ($12.55), while Whitney – The Greatest Hits went from £7.99 to £9.99 ($15.68).

It appears that Sony, which owns the rights to much of Houston’s back catalog, increased the wholesale price of the records, automatically boosting their retail prices.

Fans of the late soul star, who was found dead in a Los Angeles hotel suite Feb. 11, vented their anger on Twitter and described the price rises as “greedy” and a “disgrace”.

Within 24 hours, iTunes, which is still responsible for setting the price it charges for music, put both records back to their original prices.

By midday Feb 13, The Ultimate Collection and Whitney – The Greatest Hits were in the top three albums on iTunes.

According to The Guardian, as many as 27 of Whitney’s singles may appear in the Top 200 charts at the weekend.