Originally Posted by
ILUVCITIBANK
For the record: William, I feel for you having to be the "public frontrunner" for starwood on this major fiasco, not unlike Tony Snow at a bad press conference. Stay tough, but perhaps ask yourself, from our perspective, how you would feel if your "bank" of starpoints just underwent a 60-66% devaluation (for mid-CAT level properties (resorts) which I prefer and target). Unless I blew the math, this is what just happened.
I totally agree with the thrust of your argument. Just have a slight quibble with the arithmetic. Assuming a 2/3 increase in redemption rate, this actually devalues your point balance by 40%. Think about it this way: say your point balance is x and the original redemption rate is r. Then the number of nights you could get before the increase is x/r; afterwards, it's only x/[(5/3)r]. Divide the later by the former, and you get 3/5, or a 40% devaluation.
(A 67% devaluation means that your points would be worth only 33% of the old value, or a tripling of redemption rates.)