Much has been talked in the press recently concerning the bingo industry struggling because of the cigarette ban in the UK. Conditions have grown so poor that in Scotland the Bingo industry has demanded massive tax cuts to help keep the industry from going bankrupt. However will the internet variation of this classic game present a lifeline, or might it not compare to its real life relative?
Bingo is an ancient game normally enjoyed by the "blue rinse" generation. For all that the game lately had undergone a recent resurgence in popularity with younger people opting to visit the bingo parlors instead of the discos on a weekend. All this is about to change with the enforcement of the anti cigarette law across Britain.
Players will no longer be able to puff on cigarettes at the same time marking off their numbers. Beginning in the summer of 2007 every public location will not be allowed to permit cigarettes in their locations and this includes Bingo parlours, one of the most favorite places where folks like to puff on cigarettes.
The effects of the smoking ban can already be seen in Scotland where smoking is already forbidden in the bingo halls. Numbers have dropped and the industry is literally fighting for to stay alive. But where have all the players gone? Surely they haven’t abandoned this established game?
The answer is on the net. People know that they can bet on bingo in front of their computer whilst enjoying a cocktail and fag and still have a chance at huge cash rewards. This is a recent anomaly and has happened bordering on perfect with the anti cigarette law.
Of course playing on the net is unlikely to replace the social part of heading down to the bingo parlour, but for a group of men and women the governing edicts have left a number of bingo enthusiasts with little alternative.