Clearly Marriott thinks that the value proposition of saving money from taking away Gold benefits (i.e. breakfast) outweighs the loss in hotel bookings during that interim period - that's their business decision. However, what makes people stay loyal to a certain chain are those goodwill gestures when they provide nicer than expected upgrades or give their members the benefit of the doubt in these situations. Even though this issue is a relatively small and obscure part of their rewards program, it shows that Marriott does not care for my business so I have no reason to prioritize Marriott in the future.