xyzzy
Aug 15, 08, 5:26 pm
From The New York Times
Gauging the Worth of a Frequent-Flier Credit Card (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/16/business/yourmoney/16money.html)
By RON LIEBER
Published: August 15, 2008
One after the other in recent weeks, airlines have altered their frequent-flier mile programs, adding fees, taking away bonuses and raising the number of miles you need for some free tickets.
But lost in fliers’ frustration over the changes is this: It may make more sense to change the credit card you use, not the airline you fly.
Consumers are currently holding about 45 million credit cards issued by United States banks that reward their users with frequent-flier miles, according to The Nilson Report, a payments systems newsletter. That number has held steady for three years.
This may be the year that number starts dropping. After a certain point, it will no longer make sense for many people to pay the annual fees that mileage cards usually charge and pay new fees to book tickets or upgrades. Will they also want to spend tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars on a card just so they can try to redeem miles for a single free plane ticket?
...
Gauging the Worth of a Frequent-Flier Credit Card (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/16/business/yourmoney/16money.html)
By RON LIEBER
Published: August 15, 2008
One after the other in recent weeks, airlines have altered their frequent-flier mile programs, adding fees, taking away bonuses and raising the number of miles you need for some free tickets.
But lost in fliers’ frustration over the changes is this: It may make more sense to change the credit card you use, not the airline you fly.
Consumers are currently holding about 45 million credit cards issued by United States banks that reward their users with frequent-flier miles, according to The Nilson Report, a payments systems newsletter. That number has held steady for three years.
This may be the year that number starts dropping. After a certain point, it will no longer make sense for many people to pay the annual fees that mileage cards usually charge and pay new fees to book tickets or upgrades. Will they also want to spend tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars on a card just so they can try to redeem miles for a single free plane ticket?
...