Much has been stated in the papers recently about the bingo industry being hit as a consequence of the smoking ban in the United Kingdom. Conditions have grown so bad that in Scotland the Bingo industry has requested huge tax breaks to help keep the businesses afloat. However does the internet version of this classic game present a reprieve, or will it not compare to its bricks and mortar kin?
Bingo is an age old game historically enjoyed by the "blue rinse" generation. For all that the game recently had experienced a recent resurgence in appeal with younger men and women opting to visit the bingo parlors in place of the bars on a Saturday night. This is all about to be reversed with the introduction of the anti cigarette law throughout United Kingdom.
Players will no longer be permitted to puff on cigarettes whilst marking numbers. Beginning in the summer of ‘07 every public area will no longer be allowed to permit smoking in their locations and this includes Bingo halls, one of the most popular areas where players enjoy smoking.
The results of the smoking ban can already be felt in Scotland where cigarettes are already prohibited in the bingo parlours. Players have plummeted and the industry is beyond a doubt fighting for to stay alive. But where have all the players gone? Surely they have not cast aside this age old game?
The answer is online. Gamblers realize that they can enjoy bingo from their computer whilst enjoying a beverage and smoke and still have a chance at monstrous jackpots. This is a recent phenomenon and has timed itself almost perfectly with the ban on smoking.
Of course betting on online is unlikely to replace the collective aspect of going over to the bingo parlor, but for a group of players the law has left a good many bingo players with little choice.