Chris, I know that folks who develop apps in their spare time probably can't afford to advertise, but the article was talking about "top developers" who want to create "high quality, high priced" apps. It's not a hobby for them, it's a business, and as the old saying goes you've got to spend money to make money.
These "top developers" need to aggressively market their apps if they want them to sell well, the same way that virtually every other business in the world needs to market their product or service.
I agree that a lot of the low-priced apps we see now are crap. But there are also some excellent low-priced apps. I wouldn't want to see the baby thrown out with the bath water.
It's a real problem, but your approach is wrong. It's like the owner of an expensive restaurant saying, "Cheaper restaurants are killing my business, so let's pass a law that every restaurant must charge at least $30 for a meal."
More expensive apps will sell if 1) they are worth the money, and 2) they receive sufficient advertising that the public is aware of them.
But are developers spending thousands of dollars for web & print ads to advertise their iPhone apps, like they do for their regular applications? Nope. Instead they are grumbling they their apps don't get free advertising via the "Top Apps" lists.
Perhaps Apple could start a separate list of "Top Apps over $5" or something similar, to help more expensive apps get more public exposure. If not, developers may just have to spend some bucks to create their own ad campaigns, as they do for their regular applications.
Raising the App Store's Base Price to $4.99 Would Be a Good Thing
Raising the App Store's Base Price to $4.99 Would Be a Good Thing