Delta, American Express Overhaul Mobile Payments Tools in New Relaunch

The Delta SkyMiles American Express card represented a huge advance in mobile payments. Not only was it something of a prototypical system in mobile payments in general, it also showed us the kind of impact that a tied-in rewards system could have. Now, a newly relaunched Delta SkyMiles American Express card—as based on reports sent our way—is poised to improve access to rewards and give customers more reason to turn to American Express.

Some of the new benefits are quite substantial, especially for frequent travelers. For instance, double miles on restaurants will soon be a thing, the report notes, as well as access to The American Express Centurion Lounges. Medallion status will be a quicker earn under the new system, and there will even be some more personalized benefits to make the card that much more effective for each individual user.

All of these new benefits are set to go live January 30, 2020, reports note, when the relaunch goes live. However, reports suggest that there won’t be that long a wait for everybody, as some new limited-time offers are set to go into effect for new card holders as of October 1. These include 60,000 bonus miles after spending $2,000 on a Gold card in the first three months, and 75,000 bonus miles—as well as 5,000 Medallion Qualification Miles after spending $3,000 on a Platinum card in the first three months.

American Express executive vice president for global consumer partnerships Eva Reda noted “…With lots of perks that elevate your travel experience, double and triple miles on spending where it counts and so much built-in value, it really pays to have our Delta Cards.” 

Valuable, yes, but only in a limited sense. It doesn’t make much sense for Delta and American Express to offer such benefits to new customers while telling the established customers they’ll have to wait until January to get access to their benefits. It’s good to draw in new customers, but it costs a lot less to keep current customers. 

Still, revamping the benefits program for everybody is a good plan, and helps keep users in the fold, which is likely the point along with drawing in new customers. Both of these are points Delta and American Express must address to keep their practices aloft.