aceflyer2 made a great point regaring the Starwood Amex card. However it must also be noted that Starpoints can be pretty valuable given that they can be redeemed pretty much without any capacity controls or blackout dates. It's for this reason SPG has probably won numerous Freddies the last 4 years. Given how easy it is to redeem Starpoints, many might be reluctant to transfer them to airline miles which are pretty easily obtainable given people's travel schedules and the status bonuses associated with flying.