No more free coffee on your birthday? Companies rein in customer rewards programs — here's why

Starbucks said it “found that the vast majority of were using their birthday reward on their actual birthday.”

As opposed to what other day one might be expected to redeem a birthday gift on? Boxing Day perhaps?

That 8 penny of cost of coffee and cup can add up!

Must! …..Feed!….. The….! CEO bonus!…………. And!……..Shareholders!

Never paid any attention nor used birthday rewards...

Free in Japan ? OMG, I almost busted a gut laughing my -ss off.

One positive thing about Japan is the number and generosity of the loyalty programs. I'm glad they're mostly app-based now, though. It wasn't long ago that one needed a separate wallet just for all the rewards cards.

Also, the programs that work at multiple retailers, like D, R, or T point, plus PayPay and credit card rewards/miles on top of the retailer points, can really add up. (Although, very few places offer T-point. Yahoo should just merge it with PayPay points. And, why didn't Yahoo name them Y points, anyway? Where did T come from? Weird.)

I agree with those saying that it just creates unnecessary overheads.

Many of the loyalty point systems seemed rather stingy anyways, especially bakeries where after 30+ purchases over 500¥ they give you like 200¥ or some tiny discount. Cumbersome, awkward and stingy. Nowadays my problem is too many different apps etc and passwords forgotten so end up only using a couple regularly, like paypay and rakuten (which are easy to use so much appreciated)