An abundance has been talked in the press not long ago concerning the bingo industry being hit as a result of the anti cigarette law in the United Kingdom. Things have grown so awful that in Scotland the Bingo industry has called for huge aid to help keep the businesses alive. But can the online adaptation of this quintessential game present a salvation, or will it never compare to its real life relative?
Bingo has been an familiar game usually played by the "blue haired" generation. For all that the game lately had seen a recent increase in appeal with younger people opting to visit the bingo parlors in place of the discos on a weekend. This is all about to be destroyed with the legislating of the anti cigarette law around Britain.
Players will no longer be permitted to puff on cigarettes while marking numbers. From the summer of ‘07 all public areas will no longer be allowed to permit cigarettes in their venues and this includes Bingo parlours, which are possibly the most favored areas where many people like to smoke.
The effects of the cigarette ban can already be felt in Scotland where cigarettes are already forbidden in the bingo parlours. Numbers have dropped and the industry is beyond a doubt fighting for its life. But where have all the players gone? Surely they have not abandoned this classic game?
The answer is online. Gamblers are now realizing that they can participate in bingo in front of their computer at the same time enjoying a drink and smoke and in the end, have a chance at big cash rewards. This is a recent anomaly and has timed itself just about perfectly with the anti cigarette law.
Of course playing on the web is unlikely to replace the collective portion of going down to the bingo hall, but for a demographic of players the law has left a good many bingo enthusiasts with no alternative.