So you've gathered up your points and booked a couple of nights at a fancy IC brand. Maybe a few hundred a night.

My question simply is, what does the hotel get on that stay, does ICH give them a cash payment for each points stay, or is it truely a "free" stay ? If they really get nothing from it, you can see why might be so stingy with the PR benefits, you would be in fact a much more costly stay than a priceline one.

If they do get a payment, i wonder how it is worked out ?