Originally Posted by lowfareair

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe Swiss only restricts certain seats (e.g. The Thrones) from anyone selecting them; all other seats in the cabin are able to be selected by anybody with a business class ticket. Similarly, I believe QR/EK/AY all allow free seat selection on a wider range of fares compared to BA - the former only restrict it on their very lowest tier (Basic/Light/etc) and even award tickets can select seats for free whereas BA charges for advance seat selection on any business class fare except the most expensive.

So yes, other airlines do not have free advance seat selection on some J fares, but I don't know of any 'full-service' airline that is as restrictive with it as BA is. On the flip side, BA offers other benefits on all tickets that you can't get on the Basic Business tickets of AY/EK/etc, such as lounge access.