Frankly, I don't care much how long they could survive and I hope they will never change the check-in process. I pass by a hotel every day and I love spending a few seconds to check-in while I walk at the same time. In my case, if I don't check-in, I will not do anything else so I don't see this as losing my valuable time. I love the free points, however just like the other poster said:

" If it continues, it’s a small amount of free points, and if it goes away, it’s not the end of the world."