Whether the other main carriers view it is abuse is really irrelevant to whether AA views it as abuse. The reality is, even several months out, it is quite common for AA to sell flights with connections that are cheaper than those without. Airlines monetize flights without connections because there is significant value there. Having a policy that openly allows changing to a routing without connections invites people to avail themselves of the preferred routing without being subject to the change fee and fare difference. Just look at the excitement in this forum when someone reports a schedule change and the first reply is always: “Now, you can get your preferred routing easily!”