The problem is that what is printed on the ticket will trump what's on the web site every time. (And what I posted above is cut-and-pasted directly from the ticket.)

As well, AC, destina, et al, ALWAYS read into ambiguities whatever is least beneficial to the passenger. A good recent example is the difficulty Empress had changing the date on a ticket that permitted free date changes.

And speaking of ambiguities, the information on the ticket itself seems strangely unambiguous -- the "change fee and difference in fare are paid prior..."

And yes, particularly in the case of a $25 change fee, you can convert your ultra-cheapie ticket into a psuedo-Y fare by simply booking the last possible date the fare or ticket is valid to, then change the ticket when your return is known for certain. That's what I've done in the past (even paying the previous $145 change fee) and I'll be doing it again in the future, if need be.