Much has been talked in the press recently about the bingo industry being hurt because of the cigarette ban in England. Conditions have grown so poor that in Scotland the Bingo industry has demanded huge tax breaks to help keep the businesses from going bankrupt. But does the web variation of this classic game provide a salvation, or might it not compare to its real life relative?
Bingo is an familiar game normally played by the "blue rinse" generation. For all that the game of late had witnessed a recent comeback in acceptance with younger men and women opting to go to the bingo halls rather than the bars on a weekend. All this is about to be reversed with the enforcement of the smoking ban throughout UK.
Players will no longer be able to puff on cigarettes at the same time dabbing numbers. From the summer of 2007 all public places will no longer be permitted to allow cigarettes in their venues and this includes Bingo parlours, one of the most popular locations where people enjoy smoking.
The results of the cigarette ban can already be observed in Scotland where smoking is already not allowed in the bingo halls. Profits have dropped and the industry is beyond a doubt fighting for its life. But where did all the players go? Certainly they haven’t given up on this enduring game?
The answer is online. Gamblers are now realizing that they can enjoy bingo using their computer whilst enjoying a beer and cig and still have a chance at huge prizes. This is a recent anomaly and has timed itself just about perfectly with the anti smoking law.
Of course wagering on on the web is unlikely to replace the social part of going down to the bingo parlor, but for a group of men and women the rules have left a good many bingo enthusiasts with little alternative.