Being within your target audience, as a PADI OW "trained" diver - if you can call it training! The simple answer is that i think the non-diving certs being used for the MSD cert is a joke, the 50 dives can mean something (they can be easily achieved without varying experiences in the same environment in very little time), but may also mean very little, the pre-req's of this card are reasonable (same as SSI and SDI i believe), but that is all they are and the card is about. The card meant very little before this change, it means just as little now - so in fact the value has not dimished and the PADI PR person (arent they all PR materials in PADI courses?) is correct.
I also dont hold much in the AOW program, but no doubt will require it in the future for some dive boats. I do value the speciality certs and have a list of the ones i want to achieve to increase my skills and knowledge of this sport, but apart from the NAUI MSD course (where you actually dive to gain the cert) i really cant see any point in the card for the sake of carrying plastic - talking of which, how many of you have more than 1 creditcard?? I only have one and dont see the value of more than one, similarly in diving, the specialities can mean a little something themselves, but the MSD card is redundant, it just says you have 5 specialities and have done a bit of diving since you were OW certified. Within the next two months i will have done at least 2/3 of the dives required for the MSD, have an AOW (probably PADI, but thru a good instructor, GDI from the board) and have dived a few times at a modest depth (70-80ft plus the deep for AOW), over wrecks, drifting reefs, in caverns/simple caves, very low viz, moderately cold (for FL 60F), some of these were with DM's and organised trips, some were with members here, some will be further instruction and others are just with my GF/buddy. By the time i reach 50 dives and 5 specialities (like i said with cash not a hard thing to do) i would not even bother to apply for this extra card and certainly would not consider myself a master or even advanced diver, but also not a resort diver!!