Aside from the various conjecture and rambling interpretations presented in the post:
http://community.norton.com/t5/Norton-Internet-Security-Norton/Norton-2015-V22-upgrade/td-p/1169633
The real question probably centers on installation of the NEW PRODUCT. I have long used NIS since it was first introduced (after using NAV since it was first introduced). The biggest annoyance for years was that when the (yearly) new/updated version of the product was released installation of the new version required removal of the existing version and installation of the new version --essentially a clean installation during which all options/settings/history was lost.
Today, happily most of the previous options/settings are retained (history is still lost --specifically Network Map info & settings) when the new version is installed over the previous version without having to first remove the previous version.
Since I do not purchase NIS directly from Norton, the price I pay is somewhat of a personal choice -- I purchase the product from a retailer that usually/frequently highly discounts the product I want. I then download the latest release of the product (after waiting 4-6 months for the 'bugs' to surface and get corrected) and use the activation key from the product I purchased.
My primary question at this time is very simply: What will be the required installation process? --Will the existing product have to be removed first, so a clean install of the new product can be done. Or preferably can the new product be installed over the existing version and preserve the current/existing options and settings.