...and in those instances, the hotel(s) were fully protected by the T&C at the time to crack down if there were any abusers or maximizers:
Previous T&C:
"Beverages are complimentary from the mini-bar in the Royal Ambassador’s personal room only, and for in-room consumption by member only (benefit excludes non-beverage items)."

The current "benefit" is totally inadequate as it does not address the price differences between different countries. 50$ in Eastern Europe (where most IC still obey by the old T&C anyway) will go a long way, while in the U.S. it's basically worthless (when you add in the creative taxes and restocking fees).