Oh, AMEX run an interesting "scam" (the quotes are for the lawyers)
They offer rather hardcore incentives to use the card, but you don't need to look hard for who pays for those nice shiny presents: the merchants. The reason merchants very much dislike AMEX is because their apparent largesse is paid out of their pocket by means of fees that are FAR higher than of other providers.
So yes, I can see why AMEX is not preferred.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
