Much has been talked in the press recently regarding the bingo industry singing the blues as a consequence of the anti smoking law in England. Conditions have become so bad that in Scotland the Bingo industry has requested massive aid to assist in keeping the businesses from going bankrupt. However can the online variation of this quintessential game offer a salvation, or might it never compare to its real life kin?
Bingo has been an established game generally enjoyed by the "blue rinse" generation. In any case the game lately had undergone a recent return in popularity with younger men and women deciding to hit the bingo parlours instead of the bars on a weekend. All this is about to change with the introduction of the smoking ban across United Kingdom.
No more will players be permitted to smoke whilst marking numbers. Beginning in the summer of ‘07 all public areas will no longer be permitted to allow smoking in their venues and this includes Bingo halls, one of the most favored locations where players like to puff on cigarettes.
The outcome of the smoking ban can already be observed in Scotland where cigarettes are already not permitted in the bingo parlors. Profits have dropped and the industry is beyond a doubt fighting for to stay alive. But where did all the players go? Surely they haven’t cast aside this age old game?
The answer is on the net. Gamblers realize that they can participate in bingo in front of their computer while enjoying a cocktail and cigarette and in the end, enjoy big cash rewards. This is a recent anomaly and has timed itself just about perfectly with the ban on cigarettes.
Of course playing on the web is unlikely to replace the social portion of heading down to the bingo hall, but for a demographic of players the governing edicts have left many bingo enthusiasts with little alternative.