Originally Posted by
dhuey
I think it might get better if competition from Amex forces the legacy airlines to improve their lounges. Those legacy lounges seem to have improved significantly in recent years, and I'm guessing that Amex has had something to do with that.
Competition from Amex lounges hasn't gotten he US3 airlines' club lounges to improve from being the pits that they were several years ago; rather, it's been competition across the US3 airlines' clubs themselves and the customer-losing value proposition costing the airline clubs paid membership and lounge pass revenue that has done it. The US3 carriers' lounges had become such a pit that they needed to up their game in order to maintain and/or grow their membership base and revenues.
While the presence of Amex Centurion lounges has cut into the US3 airline club lounge scene a bit, Amex was relatively late to the game and is still a bit player by itself; which is why Amex has the Priority Pass relationship.
Unless Amex finds the overcrowding lounge situation to cost it membership and other related revenue, why would Amex invest a whole lot more to alleviate the crowding situation for its customers? It may find it more useful to open more lounges and just put up with the overcrowding unless it really considers the US3 airline club membership programs to be competition for Amex lounges and revenue generated because of the Amex lounges. Are lots of Amex Platinum cardholders ditching Amex Platinum cards because of overcrowding at some Amex Centurion lounges? Until that happens, the crowd situation at Amex lounges may be considered tolerable by Amex, right?