Anderton
The CCC has a download for the "core" version and separate downloads for add-ons. The core download has what Cakewalk considers core features, so you can look to that for an indication of how things will be handled in the future.
Correct that's one way of looking at it. Also any feature that is included as part of Artist, Professional and Platinum would be treated as core. Another data point is some features require us to pay royalties, some may be features that take a huge investment in time to develop, and others may be brand new innovations from Cakewalk rather than enhancements to the existing set of features. Those may not be treated as core.
While Cakewalk reserves the right to determine what features will be offered in the core set, for practical purposes you can assume that the vast majority of new feature enhancements or integrated features WILL be part of your lifetime update purchase. As a working example, think of all the features that you got as part of the 2016 cycle. Had we the lifetime model then, off the top of my head right now I can't think of anything other than maybe drum replacer and maybe vocal sync that might not have been part of the core feature set. The rest would likely have been included for all. Any plugins or add on's of course will be subject to additional pricing. While we do have to continue to generate revenue to develop the software, any in-app add on's will typically be really affordably priced so its not like you will be paying hundreds of dollars for them.
Besides features, the HUGE advantage of this plan is for those users who care more about fixes and optimizations will have these for life without paying a penny. This addresses the limitation of our prior model where some people felt that they were forced to renew membership even though they didn't particularly care about new features. We want our users to feel like they are part of an ever evolving platform and ecosystem that grows with them and addresses their needs.