GUWonder

Were AA to try to push Citi to sever Citi’s contract with RV/TPG so as to ramp up pressure on RV/TPG, why wouldn’t RV/TPG subject any such AA move to a claim of tortious interference? Whether a claim is successful or not is more up in the air ….. than being subject to a claim. Throwing some sort of mud hoping to see some of it stick and gain some advantage is not all that exceptional.

Adam1222

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Simply encouraging someone to breach a contract is not tortious interference with a contract. Short answer is that the act itself must be unjustified, and if you are exercising your own contractual right to protect your own interest, it does not qualify. (Even if you don't have a contractual right but, for example, a common law property right, or even if your just being an aggressive competitor, you probably are okay.)

​​​​​​ it would also have to induce Citi to *breach* it's contract with RV. You have no idea what that contract says.

Without knowing what either contract says, this speculation as to legal liability for hypothetical conduct is more useless than most.
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GUWonder

Not less useless than most, since the discussion got extended.

Klems

Victoria Walker is leaving TPG, apparently in good part because of the way TPG has been dealing with diversity (see further down her thread).

hugolover

There's clearly a problem with TPG when it comes to diversity with so many people highlighting it in their resignation comments?

I feel like it represents the wider travel industry as a whole, in terms of representation of Black and Minority Ethnic (US "Persons of Color") as well as those part of the LGBTQQIP2SAA+ community. I noticed that white gay travel bloggers think this single criteria alone, means the diversity "tick box" is achieved.

GUWonder

It's a dynamic that is not limited to TPG.

Some kinds of minority voices on many a travel forum feel like their voices/concerns are more stifled than the voices/concerns of those who more closely identify with majority/plurality groups and/or some other kinds of minority groups. This isn't just an issue in the miles/points blogosphere. It also shows up on other travel-related sites/boards and across social media and the internet in general.

For better or worse, the engagement-level/money also reinforces institutional/systemic biases when it comes to online forums and leads to dynamics that marginalize some kinds of voices more than others.

What I find interesting is how TPG and many of the other major miles and points blogs are so very much male-dominated despite how heavily invested women are in the miles and points game too. Even with economic disparities and business travel demographics being what they are, there is something else going on that leads to some kind of voices coming across as amplified while other kinds of voices get drowned out or disappeared.

GUWonder

Did they try to short her on pay/pay raises? That's also a way to try to marginalize contributors and yet act as if "oh, but we tried".

ctownflyer

Contracts between banks and blogs are as one-sided as they get. The banks can and do drop blogs for anything at any time and it's been done to titan blogs for something as little as a magazine article about the blogger or something a blogger writes that someone at the bank doesn't like. Citi can decide on their own accord to protect their airline partner and cut off a blogger, this is not uncommon.

Now I don't think it makes financial sense for banks to drop TPG/RV as a credit card partner as they're simply too big and too lucrative of an acquisition channel, but I'm sure TPG/RV discussed the possibility before proceeding with a lawsuit against AA.

GUWonder

Would you say that RV/TPG almost certainly spends more money on lawyers than at least most -- if not even all -- of the major miles/points blogs that happen to catch my fancy? Being big enough and having greater in-house and external counsel resources may mean that RV/TPG has something different than the likes of what Dansdeals, OMAAT and VFTW have had with a card-issuer.

oliver2002

RV is a completely different animal compared to a blog cluster like BArea or titans like OMAAT & VFTW. They own/operate creditcards.com/Bankrate which is the dominant player in the affiliate CC/mortgage/loans shilling game. RV has the power to pick up the phone and ask Citi what they will do if RV sues AA

oliver2002

107k is not bad for a writer?

Adam1222

It's not bad for a reporter (though not amazing for a "senior" level writer). But it's not great at all for a credit card marketing content provider in Manhattan.

Not surprising that RV gives journalist titles and journalist salaries, while abiding by none of the rules of journalistic ethics.

ctownflyer

Of course.
That being said, I don't believe that question could or would be answered with 100% certainty. But perhaps a strong confidence level was good enough to proceed. Either way, it's pretty fascinating to watch.

GUWonder

You have the power to ask Citi. Not that an answer would necessarily be as forthcoming as a non-answer response to a question of such nature.

Alpha Golf

Big travel show coming up in DC --

At America’s Favorite Travel Show, You Can:

• Meet travel celebrities The Points Guy – Brian Kelly, Pauline Frommer and Andrew McCarthy

Think I'll give it a miss...