text: Rob, usually I'm a fan, but this situation is more complicated than your article suggests.  Bait and switch is illegal.  Look at the name of the program.  Look at the card.  Look at the logo.  Many of the early adopters of Air Miles signed up with the promise of 1 point = to 1 mile of Air Travel.  Few people want "Small Appliance Rewards".  If Air Miles suddenly came to the conclusion that their own system was no longer viable as a business, then they should have changed the name of the program to reflect that fact at that time.
  
  In this case the government does have a role to play in consumer protection.  It is much closer to the (basically successful) gift card expiry problem than the (questionable) skinny bundle problem.  The ironically named parent, LoyaltyOne, always sold the dream trip to Hawaii ... not the blender.  And the only way to get the dream trip was to save up miles for many years.  My father wasted gas to buy gas from Shell.  He died without going on his dream trip.