Interesting info. I have always reserved my cabins directly, on the cruiseline websites. Mainly because this is the one and only way I have been able to ensure that I get the exact suite I want. Agents I've tried to work with have been too ditsy/scatterbrained/disorganized/distracted to manage this in the past. And I've always had the feeling I was indeed leaving 'something on the table' and that the cruise line could perhaps reward me a little bit for saving them the commissions.