I am a plat. However, this year I had only 18K miles and $1900 EQD and it was the beginning of Dec. AA offered me renew plat for $1300. Although I was going to be flying one more RT before Dec 31, I was still miles from plat and even close to not making it to Gold. I jumped at the opportunity. Most of my AA flying is business related in small RJs around the South. The benefits of plat on just the travel side (seating, boarding and international availability of lounges) made it obvious where I wanted to go. (For me the decision was a no-brainer.)
I already have my first trip on AA booked for Feb.