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Well assuming nothing else changes this seems a very welcome and simple way of doing things, particularly (apparently) adding more flexibility to non HBO fares.
I imagine the point we need to be sure about is that status passengers can continue to pre-allocate seats on the "with checked bags" tickets, though I doubt this has changed.
Apart from that, I suspect that 99% of BA passengers and 95% of FTers would scarcely notice the difference from the previous régime, however. The fare difference for last minute changes could be quite stiff.