Allegedly, the reason UA holds exit rows for 1P and higher isn't so much of a perk reason as a "we don't know if you are capable of meeting the requirements of the exit row" for unknown flyers.

Your 2nd paragraph...what about a Kettle who purchases a ticket far in advance, and has a return the next day, thus paying top dollar as the cheap tickets mostly require minimum stays in markets where LCC pricing hasn't eroded the fare structure. Would he be entitled to that as pricing isn't necessarily based only on advanced purchase, but also on bookings, projected demand and minimum stay, along with the competition of fare sales that come and go from time to time. Maybe Joe mileage runner minimum level elite books 1 week out, has a weekend stay and pays 1/4 of what the Kettle paid, and the kettle paid even more to get that seat. Would you say that the airline shouldn't allow things to be bought on a 1st come 1st serve basis based on paying extra for it? The basic seat/ticket price is irrelevant as status doesn't come into play at all, and advanced purchase isn't always the major determining factor, rather this is an incremental, above the ticket price fee. Most people that buy more than a few months out pay "regular" prices (non sale) while most sales start a few months before dptr as that's when the LCC's launch them, and the demand picture has solidified. For example, WN used to only publish there schedule for less than (2) quarters. If you wanted to buy a ticket somewhere 7 months out, you had to pay legacy non-sale prices. I believe they have increased their schedule, window to 3/4 of a year now, give or take, but it still isn't the 331 days of some carriers, so booking for next Oct, is going to cost you more for most people than booking for Feb, as there aren't the LCC prices to compete with.

I understand what your saying, and I see where you might feel miffed, but come on, the right to sell a product that people are willing to pay for is a primary goal of airlines. They don't give seats to employees over revenue passengers, they don't give upgrades to F when they expect to sell them, and free premium Y seating would be a function of giving it away when they feel they can't sell it for more. An accurate demand for what people are willing to pay is the cornerstone of revenue management and yield systems. It is the airline's fiduciary duty to their shareholders to return a profit, when able to to them. You may (and rightly so, or wrongly so) feel that the mass exodus of flyers over the inability to get something of value for free over those that have tendered payment for it will hurt the bottom line of the airline. Incremental revenue is the big thing. A la carte pricing, charging for services that people are willing to pay for is no longer a thing of the future, but a direction even WN has chosen to offer with their "Business Select" fares. The company that advertises their simplicity also looks to charge for a service/product when there are people willing to pay for it.