I understand people may be upset, but everyone who signed up for this card knew this was coming sooner or later. IHG was (and still will be) paying good money to their cardholders in terms of a free night. There's no more $700/night rooms for $49 a year, but the card is still a good value, although I still prefer Hyatt over IHG.

Unfortunately shareholders rule the world, so companies will continue to find ways to cut a penny here and a penny there in an attempt to keep inflating the stock value, which includes reducing the cost of loyalty perks -- we've seen it with airlines, and now we see it with hotels.