An abundance has been talked in the press not long ago regarding the bingo industry singing the blues as a consequence of the cigarette ban in England. Conditions have become so poor that in Scotland the Bingo industry has requested massive tax cuts to help keep the businesses afloat. However will the web variation of this traditional game offer a escape, or will it never compare to its real life kin?
Bingo has been an classic game generally played by the "blue haired" generation. In any case the game of late had undergone a recent comeback in popularity with younger members of society deciding to visit the bingo halls in place of the bars on a weekend. All this is about to change with the enforcement of the anti cigarette law throughout England and Wales.
Players will no longer be allowed to smoke while marking off their numbers. Beginning in the summer of ‘07 every public location will not be allowed to permit smoking in their locations and this includes Bingo parlours, one of the most common locations where many people like to puff on cigarettes.
The results of the cigarette ban can already be observed in Scotland where smoking is already not permitted in the bingo parlors. Numbers have dropped and the business is literally fighting for its life. But where have the players gone? Surely they haven’t cast aside this familiar game?
The answer is on the net. Gamblers realize that they can play bingo from their computer at the same time enjoying a cocktail and cigarette and in the end, enjoy big cash rewards. This is a recent development and has timed itself bordering on perfect with the ban on cigarettes.
Of course wagering on on the net will never replace the communal portion of heading down to the bingo parlour, but for a group of players the rules have left a lot of bingo enthusiasts with no alternative.