Not really taking a position on anything Delta is doing with respect to SkyMiles, as I only have anecdotal data. Although I have a general feeling that availability and value of SkyMiles has decreased quite a bit since last year. BUT, I have a lot of miles from other airlines FF programs like USAir, which used to have decent pricing, usually better than Delta. Now it is ridiculous, to where my US miles seem almost worthless compared to Delta SkyMiles.