Since they put it on the app store Logic has been $199, because there isn't an upgrade price from previous versions that used to cost $500-$1000. I think it's another halo effect -- Apple wants to sell hardware and is willing to use cheaper software like Logic and Final Cut to draw pros and prosumers to the platform. Most other DAW vendors don't have hardware sales to fall back on.
This, or something close to it, is surely the reason. Everything Apple does can be traced to a motivation to sell more hardware. (e.g. iTunes, App Store, iWork, Apple Maps, etc...)
Hardware and the OS are their secret sauce, commoditizing everything else (applications, services, content) is in their best interest.
Logic 9 was also $199. There's also no upgrade pricing, so even though I just bought Logic 9 six months ago, the relatively low price point makes it a LOT more likely that I'll upgrade.
I'm sort of pissed, as I bought Logic (a personal copy, used to use ones at school when I attended) about six months ago. Spending another $200 now, despite really liking the new features, sucks--I'm an amateur, that double-dip hurts my hobby funds.
Yep, it seems like this is Apple's "solution" to the Mac App Store not providing any discounts to previous purchasers. They did the same on several other products, reducing their prices dramatically when they went to the MAS.
I'm one of them. I started with Logic 5 (from Emagic), and keep throwing money at upgrades every time a new version comes out. Where's the reward for my loyalty? Oh, and thanks for dropping 32-bit plug-in support.
Perhaps, though as someone who bought Logic 9 less than a month ago (there being no hint at all that a new version was anywhere on the horizon), it still burns.
It's not a surprise, they've done this to other pro products as well. The money Apple makes through these applications is a drop in the lake for them, by moving the price down so much they give competitors a hard time and appease consumers (and it's probably still at a net win).