As a Starwood/SPG diehard and an admirer of Marriott brands, here is my take and opinion on this well-discussed matter [which, frankly, has me worried due to my affinity for some Starwood brands].

Here is where I think all brands currently stand across both companies:

Bold = Marriott, Italic = SPG
LUXURY
Ritz-Carlton, Bulgari, St. Regis
LIFESTYLE
Edition, W, Design Hotels
UPPER-UPSCALE
JW Marriott, Renaissance, AC Hotels, Westin, Le Méridien
UPSCALE/SIGNATURE
Marriott, Delta, Gaylord, Protea, Sheraton
MIDSCALE
Courtyard, Moxy, Four Points, Aloft
EXTENDED-STAY
Marriott Executive Apartments, Marriott Vacation Club, Residence Inn, Fairfield Inn, Springhill Suites, Towneplace Suites, Element
INDEPENDENT/COLLECTIONS
Autograph Collection, Luxury Collection, Tribute Portfolio

Here's what I'd like to see happen:
- It goes without saying that 30 brands makes for a MONSTER of a company. Many of these brands are strong, recognized names and I believe that Marriott needs to be very smart and judicious when deciding which brands to keep, which to kill off and which to fold into other brands
- It's an established fact Marriott will be keeping all eleven Starwood brands for now... but there will inevitably be some cuts here and there as there are obvious overlaps
- That being said, Marriott's own brands should ideally NOT be impervious to chopping/realignment if the company wants to truly strengthen its own offerings as Starwood brings quite a bit of strength to the table

On that note, this is a map of what I think the new company should look like based on the categories I outlined above:
LUXURY
- Ritz-Carlton, Bulgari and St. Regis all stay as individual brands
LIFESTYLE
- Edition stays
- W stays; this brand alone must have been a particularly juicy morsel for Marriott to go after
- The agreement with Design Hotels should stand as Starwood is a dominating shareholder and it gives Marriott an excellent platform into the lifestyle/design-led sector
UPPER-UPSCALE
- JW Marriott and Westin stay
- Kill Renaissance and let Le Méridien live/take its place; LM has a stronger brand identity, more recognized name internationally and just seems to be the better brand between the two. Current Renaissances could be converted into Marriotts or LMs as need be.
- Kill AC and fold its properties into Marriott or Le Méridien; I see a lot of similarities in design between AC and LM [especially in their liberal use of pattern and shades of grey] and it'll give LM a grand return to its homeland on the Old Continent
UPSCALE/SIGNATURE
- Marriott isn't going anywhere
- Delta, Gaylord and Protea seem a little superfluous - Protea should definitely be folded into Courtyard or Marriott and Gaylord should be swallowed by Marriott. Maybe keep Delta although I don't personally see the point...
- Sheraton has a very strong brand name outside the US - especially in Asia and Marriott knows this, so definitely cull the bottom-end of this brand, kill the hare-brained Sheraton Grand designation and redefine the overall standards to make this brand relevant. Maybe have Sheraton be Marriott's international arm? [Sheraton by Marriott?]
MIDSCALE
- Courtyard's presence is significantly larger than the Four Points network so Four Points might have to bite the dust. Courtyard's new formula for rooms/public areas is also far fresher than the Four Points design in my opinion... Though the Four Points beer campaign MUST BE SAVED
- Kill Moxy and replace it with Aloft; more brand recognition, stronger name/identity and much larger network
EXTENDED-STAY
- Many, many Marriott brands running around in here; I'd like to see some consolidation among brands [i.e. Residence Inn, Fairfield Inn, Springhill Suites and Towneplace Suites get folded into one major brand - a nouveau Residence Inn if you will]
- Keep Element - it provides a unique edge over Marriott's more staid extended-stay offerings with its environmental/green approach and overall design aesthetic
INDEPENDENT/COLLECTIONS
- This is where things get interesting: Starwood has the Luxury Collection set aside for independent luxury properties and Tribute Portfolio for independent four-star/upper-upscale properties while Autograph Collection sort of lumps some great luxury/upper-upscale properties together under a common umbrella. I think Marriott should keep the Luxury Collection and move some of its more prized Autograph properties to it and reserve the Autograph name for upper-upscale properties; therefore, the Luxury Collection sticks around as a collection of top-end individual properties and Autograph eats Tribute

FINAL/ADJUSTED PORTFOLIO: Ritz-Carlton, Bulgari, St. Regis, Edition, W, Design Hotels, JW Marriott, Westin, Le Méridien, Marriott, Sheraton, Courtyard, Aloft, Marriott Executive Apartments, Marriott Vacation Club, new consolidated Marriott extended-stay brand, Element, Luxury Collection, Autograph Collection

Based on these notes, the new company should go from 30 brands back to Marriott's current count of 19 but with a more concentrated portfolio specializing in each area and a far, far stronger grasp on the lifestyle and upper-upscale segments.

I'd like to end this by reiterating that these thoughts are purely based on my own speculation and bias and as a customer/loyalist who wants to see his favorite hotel group go to a good, loving home. I was wary of this acquisition [I still am to some extent] but if Marriott does things right, then I believe that only good will come from this for everyone.

khabah