CDKing is right... if you book with cash, the status waiver only applies to you, even if you are flying in a group... only your fare gets the wavier.
However, if you as an MVP Gold use your points to purchase a flight for anyone (even if you are not traveling with them) then it has the full change/cancel waiver protection.
Alaska customer service told me this tip last fall when trying to help coordinate getting friends to potential bowl game sites for the UW, since we had to plan before we knew where we were going
