I think the Bank of America Accolades card is a promising start. However if they want cardmembers to make the switch from American Express, they will need to prove their worthiness with the card. The best way to do that is the word of mouth and publicity Amex has been great at doing over the years. Once people know about the Accolades card this way they will be more willing to switch.

Another thing B of A should consider with the Accolades is instead of only mimicking the benefits American Express Platinum/Centurion offers, they should go a step further and add useful new benefits which Amex does not offer. Ultimately this is what will determine whether the Accolades is a success or not.