Think of it as poetic license.  

Kylotan
What I don't think has been answered yet, is how it will work out for those of us that never did update every year, and don't intend paying $149 every year in future either.

The world has changed. It is about time.

Kylotan
I'm seeing a lot of good arguments that the current membership model is as good value, if not more so, than the previous model of buying an update every year. Probably true. (Ignoring my previously shared concerns about reliability, at least.)
 
What I don't think has been answered yet, is how it will work out for those of us that never did update every year, and don't intend paying $149 every year in future either.

I had the same question and got answered by a Baker. If you have upgraded to Platinum (full years subscription so you own it) apparently it does not matter how long you wait. You could wait a year or more between buying a new year's "subsciption" and still pay the same as someone who's "subscription" lapsed just last month. You will get the exact same cumalitive upgrade as they do for the same price.
 
What you DON'T get are some of the one of goodies that the Baker's toss out on a month to month basis but the core program will be intact.
 
However the upgrade price will actually be $200... not $149... unless there is a sale going on which it seems like there will be from time to time.
 
Cheers.
 
PS: As to the OP... *waits for the penny to drop just like it did for every other person who freaked out about this in January*
 
lulzity

They just announced a $149 upgrade (sale)...

SDCyclist
Anyone who thinks that the bakers are at some point going to run out of good ideas to implement hasn't spent much time in the features and requests forum.
....

 
Problem that I have here is that it seems so far that the features and requests forums hasn't really seem to drive any of the most recent feature development.  In an idea 'membership' model, what I'd like to see is that top-voted features get some amount of priority development time.  Actually, Cakewalk development seems to go in the completely opposite direction - IIRC, I don't remember many people requesting drum replacer or Vocal Sync.  I'm not saying they were not wanted by somebody, they just don't seem like features that people were clamoring for. 
 

charlyg
 
 
They just announced a $149 upgrade (sale)...

 
I'm still waiting/hoping that it goes lower than this as it has in the past.  So far (again, just to me) I haven't been able to justify the upgrade yet, seeing that X3 is currently meeting my needs.
 
 

forkol
Problem that I have here is that it seems so far that the features and requests forums hasn't really seem to drive any of the most recent feature development.

 
Compare the bug fixes to forum comments. You'll see a very close correlation. The community made it clear that stability is important; that feedback has driven the accelerated bug fix schedule. But also read the next two paragraphs in my response.
 

Actually, Cakewalk development seems to go in the completely opposite direction - IIRC, I don't remember many people requesting drum replacer or Vocal Sync.  I'm not saying they were not wanted by somebody, they just don't seem like features that people were clamoring for.

 
People have asked for a virtual keyboard, and got it. The Japanese market demanded DSD and got it. There were requests for being able to see all Sends and FX at the same time - done. Ditto better MIDI features and AudioSnap improvements. A more customizable control bar and putting user-defined buttons on it - done. VST3 enhancements to accommodate orchestral libraries - done. Drum map fixes - in progress. Mix Recall was mentioned in the forums as something people would like, and it's turned out to be very popular - and has also had several enhancements based on user feedback. And so on.
 
To say that Cakewalk goes in the completely opposite direction of what people want is simply not true, nor is it a bad thing that Cakewalk has developed features that may not have been "clamored for" but have been extremely popular. That shows maybe sometimes it's a good idea for Cakewalk to go in the direction of what they would like to see in the program - everyone there uses it, and they have a really good handle on what is or is not possible. 
 
Furthermore, Cakewalk does not live in a vacuum. If other programs include features that its users really like, it's worth investigating whether those features could be adapted to SONAR. VocAlign is an essential tool for many professional users. To have it available in SONAR is something I certainly would never have clamored for, because I would never have thought it possible to include the equivalent of a $600 program in a DAW that costs $500, nor do I need to do ADR very often. But now it's there, I use it all the time for vocals. And if you wondered whether there was any interest in a drum replacer, I guess you didn't see all the "When are we getting the Drum Replacer?!?" posts after it was announced. 

 

In an idea 'membership' model, what I'd like to see is that top-voted features get some amount of priority development time.

 
If you look at the Features & Ideas forum, you won't find a ton of slam dunks. Everyone has features they want implemented, and turning development into a popularity contest based on what people in a forum say, when the forum represents but a fraction of the user base, is probably not the wisest way to do program development. Taking into account multiple factors like user survey results, the most common needs of the greatest number of users, remaining competitive with other programs, and the needs of pro users who need a little more mojo than average, seems like it would create a more cohesive pathway for future development.
 

Anderton
 it would create a more cohesive pathway for future development.

to translate: it would be way more gooder

forkol
 
Problem that I have here is that it seems so far that the features and requests forums hasn't really seem to drive any of the most recent feature development.  In an idea 'membership' model, what I'd like to see is that top-voted features get some amount of priority development time.  Actually, Cakewalk development seems to go in the completely opposite direction - IIRC, I don't remember many people requesting drum replacer or Vocal Sync.  I'm not saying they were not wanted by somebody, they just don't seem like features that people were clamoring for. 
 

You've got a point there.
First thing I saw this year that is of any interest to me, is start page improvements to get organized.
 
Not a single thing I saw in Platinum made me remotely interested getting it.
So a more user driven from FR might change that.
 
But since some of top voted FR's are manmonths of developments probably we may have to be patient still.
 
More important is that CWBRN's backlog are treated and fixed - nothing comes before that.
Every one fixed will make at least one user very happy, and yet thousands that never have to experience the same problem just feeling "this is a darn stable daw where everything works as intended". Instead of these thousands of users that waste hours to troubleshoot and find workarounds.
 

lfm

forkol
 
Problem that I have here is that it seems so far that the features and requests forums hasn't really seem to drive any of the most recent feature development.  In an idea 'membership' model, what I'd like to see is that top-voted features get some amount of priority development time.  Actually, Cakewalk development seems to go in the completely opposite direction - IIRC, I don't remember many people requesting drum replacer or Vocal Sync.  I'm not saying they were not wanted by somebody, they just don't seem like features that people were clamoring for. 
 

You've got a point there.
First thing I saw this year that is of any interest to me, is start page improvements to get organized.

 
But there's a big difference between saying new features aren't of personal interest to you, compared to saying that Cakewalk development goes in the opposite direction of what people want. This post delineates new features that were requested. Those features must have been important to some people, or the features wouldn't have been requested.
 

More important is that CWBRN's backlog are treated and fixed - nothing comes before that.

 
If you look at the list of bug fixes that occurred between X3 and SONAR 2015, as well as the list of fixes in each release, I think you'll see that making fixes has indeed been a priority. So that's another instance of Cakewalk making changes based on the desires of many segments of the community (i.e., those who place more importance on stability than features). 

........i'd really just like to find out how to subscribe to the eZine or is that only available with SPlat?