Much has been talked in the papers recently concerning the bingo industry singing the blues as a result of the smoking ban in the United Kingdom. Conditions have grown so poor that in Scotland the Bingo industry has requested massive tax breaks to assist in keeping the businesses from going bankrupt. However will the internet variation of this quintessential game provide a salvation, or will it never compare to its land based opposite?
Bingo has been an ancient game historically played by the "blue rinse" generation. For all that the game of late had witnessed a recent resurgence in appeal with younger men and women opting to visit the bingo halls instead of the clubs on a weekend. This is all about to be reversed with the enacting of the anti cigarette law across UK.
Players will no longer be allowed to smoke while marking numbers. From the summer of ‘07 all public areas will no longer be allowed to permit smoking in their locations and this includes Bingo parlours, one of the most favored locations where folks like to puff on cigarettes.
The results of the anti cigarette law can already be felt in Scotland where smoking is already illegal in the bingo parlours. Profits have dropped and the industry is absolutely struggling for to stay alive. But where did the players go? Certainly they haven’t given up on this familiar game?
The answer is on the internet. Gamblers realise that they can participate in bingo from their computer at the same time enjoying a drink and cig and still have a chance at big cash rewards. This is a recent development and has happened just about perfectly with the anti cigarette law.
Of course betting on on the web is unlikely to replace the collective part of heading down to the bingo parlor, but for a demographic of people the governing edicts have left a number of bingo players with little choice.