Much has been talked in the papers just a while ago regarding the bingo industry being hurt as a result of the anti smoking law in England. Things have grown so awful that in Scotland the Bingo industry has asked for big aid to help keep the businesses from going bankrupt. However can the net version of this quintessential game provide a lifeline, or will it never compare to its real life kin?
Bingo is an age old game generally enjoyed by the "blue haired" generation. Although the game lately had undergone a recent comeback in popularity with younger men and women opting to hit the bingo parlours in place of 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 allowed to smoke at the same time dabbing numbers. Starting in the summer of 2007 every public area will not be permitted to allow smoking in their venues and this includes Bingo parlors, which are possibly the most popular areas where players enjoy smoking.
The effects of the cigarette ban can already be observed in Scotland where cigarettes are already illegal in the bingo parlors. Profits have plunged and the industry is literally fighting for its life. But where did the players go? Obviously they haven’t forgotten this classic game?
The answer is on the net. Players realize that they can enjoy bingo from their computer while enjoying a drink and smoke and still have a chance at monstrous cash rewards. This is a recent anomaly and has timed itself bordering on perfect with the ban on cigarettes.
Of course wagering on on the web could never replace the communal part of going over to the bingo parlor, but for a demographic of people the governing edicts have left a number of bingo enthusiasts with little choice.