Interesting article with very valid points. I'm very worried about Marriott's conversion of current starpoints. They categorize their hotels much less generously than Starwood, with lower brands like Courtyard and Fairfield suites dominating most of cat 1-7 in desirable locations, and of course the Ritz Carlton's are in an entirely different tier which costs more points. There are cases where even a 1 to 4 conversion, which I highly, highly doubt they would do, wouldn't provide enough points to stay in a similar (or worse) Marriott property in the same location. This then makes me nervous regarding the timeshare conversion rates, which are already not great with SPG's system.
I would definitely be disappointed if they converted SPG Gold to silver, which has basically no value and can be obtained by simply getting the Marriott credit card. I would hope that they might restructure the program a bit to make a level more similar to SPG Gold. Although many say SPG Gold has no value, I have gotten several nice room upgrades with it, and the 4pm late checkout and higher earning rates have definitely been appreciated and used.
Also, I don't love the fact that Marriott Rewards and Ritz Carlton are different programs and you can't sign up for both.
If things really go badly, I'm prepared to transfer stays to Hyatt's program, although I am a bit stuck as I convert a week to points relatively often. If only Hyatt could have acquired Starwood!
