biship ..... you seem to miss the most obvious point.

We are talking DM lists here.

By definition there is NOT a DM list until the flight in under airport control, which is always a few hours before scheduled departure.

At that point as most above have pointed out, there are 3 things only that come into play, plus time added to DM list if a tie breaker is needed. Agent does not care if you are "paying" for UG with a SWU, a HK49, 500 milers, a CS bluey, sales Dept upgrade, a note from God, or miles ...... all those animals are EQUAL at that point. Status is king at this time.

Your STATUS and TICKET class is clearly the deal breaker most times.

BEFORE the day of flight ... sure a SWU or HK49 will whup 500 milers or 24 hour Sales Dept certs etc, each and every time. And you know why? United ONLY give SWU and HK49 to the heaviest flyers. Seems fair to me.