Is this kind of like the difference between "reffing the defense" vs. "reffing the matchup"?
I think it's just another way of stating the same philosophy. Advantage/disadvantage is still used in determining a foul. Perhaps they thought the language needed updating a little by adding the term "illegal contact". Perhaps some of the older er, I mean more experienced people have a direct knowledge of the history of that rule. But I've been around long enough to know the basic philosophy hasn't really changed.