In business it may not matter if there is a net gain or loss becuase it is treated as a cost of doing business.

What is the cost to Gold Points? A very difficult question. If the gold points are used for a free hotel stay then the cost is close to nothing since the room given away would have most likely gone empty anyway. If the points are being converted into something else then it gets more complicated but the true cost is going to be far less than what everyone thinks.