An abundance has been talked in the papers not long ago regarding the bingo industry being hit as a consequence of the anti smoking law in Britain. Conditions have grown so poor that in Scotland the Bingo industry has demanded big tax cuts to help keep the industry from going bankrupt. However can the online variation of this classic game present a salvation, or might it not compare to its real life peer?
Bingo is an enduring game normally played by the "blue rinse" generation. Although the game lately had experienced a recent resurgence in appeal with younger members of society deciding to visit the bingo parlors instead of the clubs on a weekend. All this is about to be destroyed with the introduction of the smoking ban around England and Wales.
Players will no longer be able to puff on cigarettes while marking numbers. Starting in the summer of 2007 all public places will not be permitted to allow cigarettes in their venues and this includes Bingo halls, which are possibly the most favored areas where many people enjoy smoking.
The results of the smoking ban can already be seen in Scotland where smoking is already banned in the bingo parlours. Numbers have plummeted and the business is absolutely fighting for to stay alive. But where did the players go? Surely they haven’t deserted this age old game?
The answer is online. Players realize that they can bet on bingo in front of their computer whilst enjoying a beer and fag and still enjoy monstrous prizes. This is a recent anomaly and has timed itself just about perfectly with the ban on cigarettes.
Of course playing on the web will never replace the communal aspect of going over to the bingo hall, but for a group of players the law has left a good many bingo players with little choice.