So I talked to a couple United agents and they gave me different answers. However, I hope the following is true:
a) Yes, $75. Change in origination or destination causes a $75 fee.
b) Itinerary locks into original booking policy. Regardless of changes to itinerary, it is grandfathered in.
c) Once an itinerary is underway, you can make date changes to the remaining itinerary with no additional fees. Assuming that the award fare is available.
And now I've called a couple times since to see if I could get consistent answers, and sadly, no.
One lady (from the callback number) adamantly claimed that even on the old policy, any date change to the itinerary regardless of the 21 days would cost $75 (so I hung up on her as quick as I could).
One lady told me that once i change my ticket, I no longer have the old policy's fees. And also that if I try to change my return flight after already flying the outbound, I will be subject to the same fee as a not yet flown date change. (this was through the standard UNITED1 number).
I also tried the Around the World Alliance desk and their answer was somewhere in between the two above.
Ugh. Can anyone recommend a good number to call to get the most knowledgeable United reps on this matter and also when the best time to call is? I'm guessing calling in the wee hours of the night is probably not the right time. =(