Much has been talked in the press not long ago concerning the bingo industry struggling because of the anti cigarette law in Britain. Things have grown so bad that in Scotland the Bingo industry has asked for massive aid to assist in keeping the industry from going bankrupt. But can the internet adaptation of this classic game provide a lifeline, or will it in no way compare to its bricks and mortar equivalent?
Bingo has been an classic game normally played by the "blue haired" generation. In any case the game of late had undergone a recent return in popularity with younger men and women deciding to visit the bingo halls in place of the clubs on a Friday night. All this is about to be reversed with the introduction of the cigarette ban across United Kingdom.
Players will no longer be permitted to smoke while dabbing numbers. From the summer of ‘07 all public places will not be permitted to allow cigarettes in their buildings and this includes Bingo halls, which are possibly the most popular areas where players like to smoke.
The outcome of the smoking ban can already be felt in Scotland where cigarettes are already illegal in the bingo halls. Profits have plummeted and the industry is absolutely fighting for to stay alive. But where did all the players go? Certainly they haven’t forgotten this familiar game?
The answer is on the internet. Gamblers realise that they can enjoy bingo from their computer at the same time enjoying a beer and smoke and in the end, have a chance at massive jackpots. This is a recent anomaly and has happened bordering on perfect with the anti cigarette law.
Of course wagering on on the web can never replace the communal aspect of going down to the bingo hall, but for a demographic of people the governing edicts have left a good many bingo players with no alternative.