TBH, there's no good outcome either way. Either this means that the seat you reserved for free as a tier member might be changed when somebody buys it, which doesn't make any sense, or it means that the seat you were assigned at check-in can be changed if somebody buys it.

And looking at their FAQ about seat selection, it says:

So, this means that the random seat you get assigned during check-in is not set in stone in case somebody wants to buy it. I wonder how they're going to implement this. Will they allow complimentary seat selection after check-in as well, so not only can your assigned seat be bought, but it can also be selected for free by those who are eligible?

NB. Cost of transfer was doubled...

It is absolutely ridiculous, borderline hostile, from AY what they are doing here with seat reservations. Finnair, really?!

i don't think it has - it's still €10 through the online store and €20 through CS. of course now the only change being that the online fee is waived with Finnair Visa.

from the finnair shop page:

I recently upgraded a flight for cash in HEL. The agent at the transfer desk mentioned that she could move people if they had not paid for their seats.

I think what that means is that they do not have a seat reservation but have been assigned a seat automatically upon theoretical seating run prior to checkin opening.

There is no difference in the seat reservation mechanism whether it was paid or complimentary for tier members. Tier members even can’t pay for reservation – it would be absolutely insane to then move them around.

Regarding the new surcharge in award points, I'm confused about the fact that there is no mention about the taxes and fees. A regular redemption one way in Europe was about 15€ in fees. Are we sure the new surcharges are not replacing the former taxes/fees?
It seems this surcharge is also correcting the situation with countries like Iceland, which require only "Northern Europe" points although it's a longer distance than some central/southern European destinations. Now for Iceland they still charge Northern Europe points but double the surcharge.

Why does it need to be corrected?

I was thinknig this too, it is really unclear if copay is to replace taxes or in addition to taxes.

If replacing taxes, this scheme would actually make total award price more predictable. You wouldn't need to price an award out in the booking engine to know what the taxes will be.

But knowing Finnair I doubt this is the intention. Reading between the lines, copay is introduced as a way to increase award prices even more. They tweak the point-prices, they add the copay, they remove perks from ticket type - all designed to increase revenue and devalue loyalty.
They could have achieved the same effect by raising the fake YQ (but then again, maybe ther are planning to do that too)

At this point I am 99% sure it is in addition to "taxes". As we all know, FInniar is not known to be able to communicate clearly, and there is no point in asking CS. Once someone books then new awards we'll know.

That is not anomaly, that is the way it works when you have a zone-based award system. You earn points based on zone, not distanc. And you redeem points based on zone not distance.

I just booked a six-leg trip in business yesterday. The first four legs are operated by BA and AA, and I was able to select seats for free. On the last two legs, however, operated by AY, the price per seat is 150 EUR. It's one of those legs in TATL where I appreciate a good sleep, so seat selection is an important part of it. The result for me? Avoid itineraries that include Finnair. If this was an intention, then well done.

So, if checkin online and print a boarding pass and not check luggage. Then there will be two people on the plane with the same seat on the boarding pass.

One of them will receive a new boarding pass at the gate.

And of coure AY will move the less-fortunate passenger to business to cover for the pain of changing seat...


... NOT, 49Ö it is.

What ticket type and what status with what airline do you have? It may be that you can assign a seat, but need to do it via CS. Finnair's IATA code is AY.

This scenario happens already nowadays and you simply get a paper slip with your new seat assignment.