Apple has denied claims that it is putting up prices on its music download service, the iTunes Music Store.

A New York Post story this morning cited sources close to the Mac maker's negotiations with the major labels as stating that Apple had been forced to up certain song prices to $1.25, an increase of over 25 per cent on the 99 cents the US-only online store currently charges.

Responding to the report, an Apple spokeswoman said: "We have multi-year agreements with the record labels and our price remains 99 cents a track."

Curiously, while music punters may have been disappointed by the news of the price increase, investors were not - and AAPL shares rose 34 cents to $26.92 during the day.

According to the NYP report, Apple has now signed agreements with EMI, Bertelsmann Music Group (BMG), Sony, Universal and Warner that will see prices increase on both individual songs and album sales. ®

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