Much has been stated in the press recently about the bingo industry singing the blues as a consequence of the anti cigarette law in the UK. Conditions have grown so poor that in Scotland the Bingo industry has demanded huge tax breaks to help keep the businesses afloat. However does the internet version of this traditional game provide a reprieve, or might it not compare to its bricks and mortar peer?
Bingo has been an established game usually enjoyed by the "blue haired" generation. Although the game lately had seen a recent increase in appeal with younger members of society deciding to visit the bingo parlours instead of the clubs on a Friday night. All this is about to be reversed with the enforcement of the cigarette ban across England and Wales.
Players will no longer be able to smoke while dabbing numbers. Starting in the summer of 2007 all public areas will no longer be permitted to allow cigarettes in their venues and this includes Bingo parlors, which are possibly the most common locations where players like to puff on cigarettes.
The effects of the anti cigarette law can already be felt in Scotland where smoking is already prohibited in the bingo halls. Profits have plunged and the business is literally struggling for its life. But where have the players gone? Certainly they have not forgotten this enduring game?
The answer is online. People know that they can participate in bingo from their computer whilst enjoying a drink and smoke and in the end, enjoy huge cash rewards. This is a recent anomaly and has happened bordering on perfect with the ban on smoking.
Of course playing on the internet will never replace the social portion of heading down to the bingo parlour, but for a group of people the rules have left a number of bingo enthusiasts with no alternative.