Before everyone starts running over to Priceline hoping to get a Starwood hotel and full SPG benefits/points, they might want to check out the SPG elite beneifts T&Cs first.
Terms & Conditions of the SPG Program
"An "Eligible Rate" is the rate an SPG Member pays for a stay in a guest room at an SPG Participating Hotel unless:
(1) the guest room was booked through a tour operator, online travel channel or other third-party channel including, without limitation, expedia.com, hotwire.com, priceline.com, orbitz.com, booking.com, travelocity.com, ctrip.com, and elong.com;"
SPG MEMBER BENEFITS
"In-hotel benefits are not offered if the reservation is made with an ineligible rate through a prepaid, third-party channel, such as priceline.com, expedia.com, booking.com, orbitz.com, elong.com and delta.com."
Note that one person's experience, one time, does not a general rule make.
