Much has been talked in the papers not long ago concerning the bingo industry struggling because of the anti smoking law in Britain. Things have become so poor that in Scotland the Bingo industry has demanded big aid to assist in keeping the businesses from going bankrupt. However will the online version of this traditional game present a salvation, or might it not compare to its real life kin?
Bingo has been an age old game generally played by the "blue rinse" generation. In any case the game lately had witnessed a recent comeback in acceptance with younger men and women opting to hit the bingo parlors rather than the clubs on a weekend. All this is about to be destroyed with the introduction of the anti cigarette law around United Kingdom.
No longer will players be allowed to smoke whilst marking numbers. Beginning in the summer of ‘07 all public areas will no longer be permitted to allow cigarettes in their venues and this includes Bingo parlours, which are possibly the most favorite places where folks like to puff on cigarettes.
The effects of the cigarette ban can already be felt in Scotland where smoking is already forbidden in the bingo parlours. Numbers have dropped and the industry is beyond a doubt struggling for its life. But where did the players go? Surely they haven’t abandoned this age old game?
The answer is on the internet. Players are now realizing that they can gamble on bingo from their computer whilst enjoying a beer and cig and still have a chance at big jackpots. This is a recent phenomenon and has timed itself bordering on perfect with the ban on smoking.
Of course playing on the net is unlikely to replace the communal aspect of going down to the bingo parlour, but for a group of men and women the rules have left a good many bingo enthusiasts with little alternative.