I disagree. Frequent flyer awards are limited and very restrictive. Most people who are willing to pay the mega bucks to sit up in front are using a business account or would be unwilling to go through the hurdles required to get an award ticket. There are only so many seats per cabin that the airlines will release for award travel period. Only at the very last minute do they sometimes free up remianing seats for last minute awards and upgrades. I challenge you to find a business willing to wait until the last minute to see if a seat "opens up" for them.

Elites can take several trips to Europe on cheap flights to earn enough miles for an award ticket but you need to remember that it takes time and money to do this---many people just do not want to spend more time on airplanes if they do not have to(except people who read this board). Those cheap seats to Europe are also giving the airline revenue on flights that tend to leave with empty seats.

As more airlines start treating mileage as a form of a prepaid travel, and as long as these awards have capcitiy controls on them, I fail to see what the problem is with brokering miles.