I don't think the "permanent hold" guaranteed your fare - it was always subject to ticket price changing at time of confirming (but I am not certain about this).
However...does the 24 hour hold for non-members now go away, and you have to pay a deposit in order to hold a fare?
EDIT: just did a test booking, and yes it looks like non-members can no longer hold fares for 24 hours for free. The deposit being asked was HKD100 for a ex-HKG fare.
Tested it out for US-HKG and US-SIN route, wit the deposit at $10 for a 72 hours hold. Indeed no longer an option for 24-hour free holds.