A lot has been talked in the papers just a while ago regarding the bingo industry singing the blues as a result of the smoking ban in Britain. Conditions have grown so awful that in Scotland the Bingo industry has called for massive tax breaks to help keep the businesses from going bankrupt. But can the internet variation of this quintessential game provide a salvation, or might it not compare to its land based equivalent?
Bingo has been an age old game normally played by the "blue rinse" generation. Although the game of late had undergone a recent resurgence in appeal with younger men and women opting to go to the bingo parlors rather than the discos on a weekend. All this is about to get flipped on its head with the enforcement of the anti smoking law all over UK.
Players will no longer be permitted to smoke whilst marking off their numbers. Starting in the summer of 2007 every public location will not be permitted to allow cigarettes in their venues and this includes Bingo parlours, one of the most popular places where players like to smoke.
The effects of the anti cigarette law can already be seen in Scotland where smoking is already banned in the bingo halls. Profits have plummeted and the industry is literally fighting for to stay alive. But where did the players go? Obviously they haven’t deserted this established game?
The answer is on the internet. Gamblers realize that they can enjoy bingo in front of their computer while enjoying a beverage and cig and in the end, have a chance at monstrous jackpots. This is a recent anomaly and has timed itself bordering on perfect with the anti cigarette law.
Of course playing on the internet could never replace the communal portion of heading over to the bingo hall, but for a demographic of players the governing edicts have left a number of bingo players with little option.