A lot has been stated in the papers not long ago about the bingo industry being hurt as a result of the smoking ban in Britain. Conditions have grown so awful that in Scotland the Bingo industry has requested huge aid to help keep the businesses from going bankrupt. However will the internet variation of this quintessential game provide a lifeline, or will it not compare to its land based relative?
Bingo has been an ancient game normally enjoyed by the "blue haired" generation. Although the game of late had undergone a recent comeback in acceptance with younger men and women deciding to go to the bingo parlors rather than the bars on a Saturday night. All this is about to get flipped on its head with the enacting of the anti cigarette law across England and Wales.
Players will no longer be able to puff on cigarettes whilst dabbing numbers. Starting in the summer of 2007 every public area will no longer be allowed to permit smoking in their venues and this includes Bingo parlours, one of the most favored locations where people like to puff on cigarettes.
The results of the smoking ban can already be felt in Scotland where cigarettes are already not permitted in the bingo halls. Profits have dropped and the business is beyond a doubt struggling for its life. But where did the players go? Obviously they haven’t deserted this age old game?
The answer is on the web. Gamblers realise that they can participate in bingo using their computer at the same time enjoying a cocktail and fag and still have a chance at monstrous prizes. This is a recent phenomenon and has timed itself bordering on perfect with the ban on smoking.
Of course betting on on the web can never replace the communal part of going over to the bingo hall, but for a demographic of men and women the rules have left a good many bingo enthusiasts with no option.