Much has been stated in the papers just a while ago regarding the bingo industry being hurt as a consequence of the cigarette ban in England. Things have grown so bad that in Scotland the Bingo industry has requested massive tax breaks to help keep the businesses alive. However can the net version of this classic game present a escape, or will it not compare to its bricks and mortar relative?
Bingo has been an established game generally enjoyed by the "blue rinse" generation. In any case the game of late had seen a recent increase in appeal with younger men and women deciding to go to the bingo halls instead of the discos on a Saturday night. This is all about to be reversed with the enforcement of the smoking ban all over United Kingdom.
No more will enthusiasts be permitted to puff on cigarettes whilst dabbing numbers. Starting in the summer of 2007 every public location will no longer be allowed to permit cigarettes in their buildings and this includes Bingo parlours, one of the most common places where players like to smoke.
The effects of the cigarette ban can already be looked at in Scotland where cigarettes are already barred in the bingo parlors. Profits have plunged and the industry is literally fighting for to stay alive. But where have all the players gone? Surely they haven’t given up on this enduring game?
The answer is on the web. Players know that they can gamble on bingo from their computer whilst enjoying a beverage and cigarette and still enjoy huge prizes. This is a recent anomaly and has timed itself almost perfectly with the ban on smoking.
Of course gambling on on the web is unlikely to replace the collective part of heading over to the bingo hall, but for a group of players the rules have left a good many bingo enthusiasts with no alternative.