Much has been stated in the press not long ago concerning the bingo industry being hurt as a result of the cigarette ban in England. Things have grown so awful that in Scotland the Bingo industry has requested big tax breaks to help keep the businesses from going bankrupt. However does the online version of this traditional game provide a lifeline, or will it not compare to its bricks and mortar kin?
Bingo is an established game usually played by the "blue rinse" generation. Although the game of late had witnessed a recent resurgence in acceptance with younger people deciding to hit the bingo parlours instead of the discos on a Friday night. This is all about to be destroyed with the legislating of the anti cigarette law across UK.
Players will no longer be allowed to puff on cigarettes whilst marking off their numbers. From the summer of ‘07 every public area will no longer be permitted to allow cigarettes in their locations and this includes Bingo halls, one of the most favored places where many people like to smoke.
The results of the anti smoking law can already be seen in Scotland where cigarettes are already barred in the bingo halls. Players have dropped and the industry is beyond a doubt fighting for to stay alive. But where did all the players go? Of course they haven’t deserted this classic game?
The answer is online. People realise that they can enjoy bingo from their computer at the same time enjoying a beverage and cigarette and still enjoy huge cash rewards. This is a recent anomaly and has happened bordering on perfect with the ban on smoking.
Of course gambling on on the net could never replace the communal aspect of going down to the bingo parlour, but for a demographic of people the law has left a number of bingo players with no alternative.