Today it looks like the question over how to handle major software updates via the Mac App Store has been answered.

Mac (and iOS) developers Panic have just announced the details on the release of Coda 2, their fantastic Web editor, the current version of which (1.7.5) currently sells in the Mac App Store for $99.99. Coda is a non-trivial app, one that has taken a lot of developer time and effort to produce. While many of it’s users would love to see Coda 2 replace 1.7.5 directly in a free upgrade, it was never likely to happen. On the flip side, it’s not appealing to pay the full new price again.

Thankfully Panic have managed to solve the problem by offering Coda 2 as a separate app. They have announced an aggressive 50% discount for the first 24 hours that the app is on sale, making for an upgrade price of just $49.99. After 24 hours the price will go up to $75, which is still a respectable 25% off.

This is a great way to solve the problem. Loyal users can get 25-50% discount on the new version. And new users get a similar introductory discount. Not only that but people who are satisfied with Coda 1.7.5 still have a product that they can obtain support and bug fixes for, as well as re-downloading to new Macs. Overall, it seems like a win to me.