I actually don't interpret it this way: I think they realized they screwed up massively and in order to fix it they can't just make a few tweaks, they'll have to really make some major changes. So they're frantically trying to revamp this fiasco and that takes time.

The reason I don't hold out a lot of hope is that if this same team that's trying to "fix" this mess came up with such a ridiculous set of rules based on a total lack of understanding or apparently any serious research into what makes people spend on Delta cards, I don't know that they are going to figure out how to fix it. Their job is: thin elite ranks, ease SkyClub crowding at the few locations that have problems, while at the same time giving people meaningful incentives to spend on their cards as they had before ($25k, $30K, etc.) and giving moderate business travelers a reasonable shot at SkyClub access for less than $1200 in opportunity cost.

In other words, they have to have a clue how their own program works. Not sure they will figure this out given how badly they missed it this time, but we shall see.

However I'm not coming back myself this year, even if they fix this stuff temporarily, because I realize AA's program is a hell of a lot better for my flying and spending habits and I get MUCH more out of it than even the old Delta program. This was not actually as true even a year ago as many AA operational improvements have only recently started to bear fruit (and I got a great status match from Hyatt Globalist, which they've never done before). Also, I can't wait around for Delta to figure out what they're doing, since I got to meet the terms of my new status challenge and be prepared for 2025, so I'm giving AA at least a year to prove themselves. I'm prepared for it not being quite as good as Delta, but the benefits are so good I'm gonna hope that it's not TOO much worse than Delta, which many here are saying is the case these days already.