A lot has been talked in the press not long ago concerning the bingo industry struggling because of the anti cigarette law in England. Things have grown so bad that in Scotland the Bingo industry has called for huge aid to assist in keeping the businesses afloat. However can the internet variation of this traditional game present a salvation, or will it in no way compare to its land based peer?
Bingo has been an age old game usually enjoyed by the "blue haired" generation. However the game of late had undergone a recent increase in acceptance with younger people deciding to go to the bingo halls instead of the bars on a Friday night. All this is about to change with the legislating of the smoking ban across UK.
Players will no longer be able to puff on cigarettes at the same time marking numbers. Starting in the summer of ‘07 all public areas will not be allowed to permit cigarettes in their venues and this includes Bingo parlours, one of the most favorite areas where folks enjoy smoking.
The effects of the anti smoking law can already be felt in Scotland where smoking is already illegal in the bingo halls. Numbers have plunged and the industry is literally fighting for to stay alive. But where have the players gone? Of course they haven’t deserted this enduring game?
The answer is on the web. People are now realizing that they can participate in bingo in front of their computer while enjoying a beverage and fag and in the end, have a chance at monstrous cash rewards. This is a recent anomaly and has timed itself just about perfectly with the ban on cigarettes.
Of course gambling on on the net is unlikely to replace the social part of going over to the bingo parlor, but for a group of men and women the law has left many bingo enthusiasts with no choice.