Originally Posted by
The Saint
Reciprocal lounge access is only relevant to those who would not get access with their class of travel. In any event, it is an adjunct to the FFPs of the member airlines.
Perhaps it's Friday afternoon but I don't follow this. For example, when I took JL SIN-KUL recently, I went into the much better QF/BA lounge (rather than the third party lounge I received an invite for) and this was down to OW.
Originally Posted by
The Saint
As the prevalence of non-alliance cooperation agreements demonstrate, allowing people to earn points/miles on other carriers is a lucrative money-spinner. Which means it falls into the category of things that advantage the members of the alliance financially, hence why it is offered. Any pax benefit is a spin-off which is cunningly marketed as if that was the main reason for doing it. It's not. It's an illusion.
... but regardless of whether it's the main reason or not, it's still a benefit for the pax which derives from the alliance so IMO, a bit harsh to call OW just a marketing gimmick.