We have a pretty good idea of what to expect based on what we've seen over the last few years. The low end (entry level) will get better and better, more for the same money. Probably the same for the mid level. The market is very competitive. That's good for the fisherman.
I used the think that a patent gave you the exclusive right to market something, but apparently I was dreaming. It appears that a patent give you the right to royalties if some else markets your patented product. If you can agree on the price, it's a license. If not, the the courts decide the royalty. I've seen several assessed at 8%. Based on that I would expect that Humminbird and Lowrance will at some point offer a "Panoptix like" product. I don't think next year. The price for a Panoptix license would be high and the court process dreadful.