A lot has been talked in the papers just a while ago regarding the bingo industry being hurt because of the smoking ban in the UK. Conditions have become so awful that in Scotland the Bingo industry has called for big aid to assist in keeping the industry alive. However will the online adaptation of this quintessential game offer a escape, or will it in no way compare to its real life opposite?
Bingo has been an established game generally enjoyed by the "blue rinse" generation. Although the game lately had witnessed a recent resurgence in acceptance with younger people deciding to visit the bingo parlours instead of the bars on a weekend. This is all about to be destroyed with the enacting of the smoking ban throughout UK.
No more will players be able to smoke at the same time marking off their numbers. Starting in the summer of 2007 all public areas will not be permitted to allow smoking in their buildings and this includes Bingo parlours, which are possibly the most common areas where people like to smoke.
The effects of the cigarette ban can already be observed in Scotland where smoking is already barred in the bingo parlours. Players have plunged and the business is beyond a doubt fighting for its life. But where did all the players go? Obviously they have not given up on this age old game?
The answer is on the internet. Players realise that they can gamble on bingo from their computer while enjoying a beer and cig and still enjoy massive cash rewards. This is a recent phenomenon and has happened almost perfectly with the ban on smoking.
Of course betting on online is unlikely to replace the social part of going down to the bingo hall, but for a demographic of men and women the law has left a lot of bingo enthusiasts with no choice.