I call it despicable. And this from a flyer who truly likes CO.

It's not like me to utter "class-action", but based on the below, it's a real problem.

1. The acknowledgement by a company person of the issue
2. Actual evidence of this issue (versus in the past, when it was
nuances of reward tickets or segments)
3. Continuation of the issue a week or so later
4. Material loss of benefits earned by Elites, contrary to the announced
buy-up plan

This is nothing new.

UA's buy-up system is a bit simpler. It's a distance-based pricing model and it's keyed against NF space. IIRC, I think a transcon is about $350.

You have a shot at booking if NF is open. Same goes for checkin -- but at that point, there wouldn't be any NF space if Elites were awaiting upgrades.

But you need to understand that with the mess they've built, this is very difficult to control.

Since everything CO does is not in the core system, if the systems don't work together, then they manifest themselves in these scenarios.

It's very simple to stop it for now. Discontinue all buy-up offers.

Is it? Where is it buried, and is it possible to just check a box and buy-ups stop? And what is the revenue impact if they did that? Maybe ELR is linked to the same system, and we'd be talking a couple hundred thousand dollars a day.

I understand what you're saying, but buy-ups are distinctly offered, akin to the extra miles offers. ELR seating is via seat selection.

It's a bit of programming, understood.

And if you are right, and they're linked (ELR and buy-ups), then back to your well-made point about systems and band-aids. (I think there is actually a Walgreen's on Smith St.).

This is status quo for UA - just means there is NF space. However, UA generally doesn't do TODs inside the UDU window (I know there are exceptions, can't remember seeing them personally or on FT).

I think it's worse for the TODs to come during the EUA window, and awful at OLCI. If you're buying a ticket a month or two out and an offer comes up, I'm guessing the average flyer is more likely than not to decline. However, if it comes when you're checking in, and you're facing the prospect of a middle seat / seat in the back, and you're starting/finishing a trip, you might just be willing to plunk down the cash a bit more freely.

There might be a real good way to "help" CO on this fire sale. If we can publicize these cheap upgrades (at the sacrifice of losing them for ourselves) to those who typically buy F, perhaps it'll hurt CO's bottom line enough to fix this sooner than later.

CO's been bungling this process from day one.

If you think $109 is a slap in the face, just wait till you see one for $39 :(

Tens-of-dollars (TOD) upgrades sold out right from underneath elites.

Keeping it Klassy, KO. :rolleyes:

Here's a (novel?) thought -- what if this isn't a buy-up to an M fare, but instead a buy-up to some other discounted coach fare (above G) that would put you in line to "guarantee" an upgrade according to the current "waitlist" underlying the EUA process. So all they're doing is offering you to pay to improve your standing in the EUA priority, which is the same thing you could have done when you originally purchased your ticket.

Remember -- CO was supposed to be working on a process by which they could give you your "projected" position on the upgrade standby list based on what other elites were on the flight. Originally, I think this was just a courtesy. But perhaps now they have figured out how to monetize that information behind the scenes.

If this is in fact the case, it's pretty legit, IMHO, just like the true advance buy-ups to M/B/Z fares offered outside of OLCI.

I don't think there's enough info to prove whether this is or isn't the case. It's not like this was offered to a Gold elite giving them the opportunity to jump the line ahead of a Platinum. You were possibly only offered the opportunity to jump ahead of other Platinums. Which is fine, if you pay more $.

I think the big difference is that UA processes eligible pending upgrades as soon as NF space opens, while CO only does it at set intervals, allowing a lot more time for TOD purchases to sneak in. Unfortunately we experienced PMUA flyers now need to learn the quirks of the PMCO system.

Great idea. Perhaps they could extend this even further and have an auction-based system. Let's each bid on what an upgrade is worth to us, perhaps getting some bonus bucks for current elite status, and then award all F seats at, say, T-30 min to the highest bidders. That should maximize their revenue!

Or what?

Additional data point when looking at the upgrade offer text:

If there is 1 seat open and 36 customers eligible, why would they offer a segment fee upgrade?

On another note, does anyone feel $119 is worth it for a 3 hour flight? It's a 757-300, so no TV, no inseat power, and the meal is the salty snack plate. I have a reclining exit row aisle, currently no one in the middle seat. I'm sort of tempted, but part of me feels it's a waste for this flight and I should not be rewarding CO for doing the *wrong* thing.

If you're sort of tempted, but it's not an obviously yes or no, that means they've probably priced it about right -- assuming, of course, that the goal is to maximize revenue, rather than make elites like us happy.

To answer your question, though, I'd personally take such an offer or not, depending upon my plans for the trip. If I needed to work (on my computer), I'd much prefer the extra bit of privacy in First. If I just wanted to read a book, your seat would be fine (and I could still enjoy a free drink or two with my endless supply of expired coupons).