Oh ye of little faith. All you need do is check out Marriott's http://www.marriott.com/marriott.mi?...tRoomAvailable page.

I think it is painfully obvious what has happened. Now that Marriott has no blackout dates, 5th night free awards, and a 20% increase in bonus points for Plats, SPG got really scared that everyone was going to jump ship and head to Marriott. This is nothing more than SPG's attempt to try and match all the great changes Marriott has made to their program.