Burger King Holdings Inc. plans to raise the price of its $1 double cheeseburger to $1.19 starting in April, as the fast-food chain puts the brakes on the controversial promotion.

The double-cheeseburger price increase won't put an end to the $1 promotion. Burger King will require franchisees to sell a BK Dollar Double—similar to the double cheeseburger but with one slice of cheese instead of two—for $1, according to a memo reviewed by Dow Jones Newswires.

Burger King's $1 double cheeseburger had become a bone of contention among its U.S. restaurant operators. The chain's franchisee association recently filed a lawsuit alleging that the company can't require restaurant operators to sell the sandwich for $1 and that they are losing money at that price. The sandwich typically sells for between $1.89 and $2.39.

The decision could help mollify some of the discontent between Burger King and its franchisees.

Burger King also recently decided to eschew tapping into money franchisees received from its suppliers of soda syrup to help boost its national ad fund.