As somebody who was involved with the launch at New World there are a few things to add to this. FlyBuys and credit card earning are two very different schemes that operate in very different ways.

When FlyBuys started in 1997 credit card use was minimal compared to now and most supermarkets didn't even accept credit cards. In the early days a FlyBuys point cost a retailer around 20c each, so figures of $25 per point were set at New World which represented a reasonable invesment in loyalty in a low margin business. When a product featured a bonus points offer this was normally billed directly to the manufacturer. There was nothing else like this in the market, and the concept of credit card points was years away from even existing in the marketplace.

Since then we're seen huge changes in the market, and IMHO FlyBuys is now largely meaningless to so many people. As we all know credit card earn is a lot better, but you have to put this into the context that this is all being funded by interchange rates, and is going to change when interchange rates are cut. It'a also a huge money go around, with ultimately that money coming from the retailer, or from the consumer if the retailer is charging a credit card fee.

Credit card usage has become a huge burden on supermarkets (and many other retailers) as interchange fees have gone up. Add in fuel discounts which affect the bottom line and suddenly you're adding a few % onto the cost of servicing a customer which leaves very little margin to improve things such as FlyBuys to make the program any more appealing.