A lot has been written in the press not long ago concerning the bingo industry being hit because of the smoking ban in Britain. Things have become so awful that in Scotland the Bingo industry has asked for huge tax cuts to help keep the industry from going bankrupt. But does the web adaptation of this classic game offer a escape, or might it not compare to its bricks and mortar relative?
Bingo has been an ancient game usually played by the "blue haired" generation. However the game lately had seen a recent comeback in appeal with younger people deciding to visit the bingo halls in place of the clubs on a Friday night. All this is about to be destroyed with the introduction of the smoking ban throughout UK.
Players will no longer be permitted to puff on cigarettes while marking numbers. Beginning in the summer of ‘07 all public locations will no longer be permitted to allow smoking in their locations and this includes Bingo halls, which are possibly the most favored areas where folks enjoy smoking.
The results of the smoking ban can already be felt in Scotland where cigarettes are already not permitted in the bingo parlours. Players have plummeted and the industry is absolutely fighting for its life. But where have the players gone? Of course they have not abandoned this established game?
The answer is online. People realise that they can play bingo in front of their computer at the same time enjoying a beverage and cig and in the end, have a chance at big prizes. This is a recent development and has happened bordering on perfect with the anti cigarette law.
Of course wagering on on the net could never replace the collective portion of heading down to the bingo parlour, but for a group of people the law has left a lot of bingo enthusiasts with little option.