An abundance has been stated in the press recently concerning the bingo industry being hit as a consequence of the cigarette ban in Britain. Things have grown so awful that in Scotland the Bingo industry has demanded big tax breaks to assist in keeping the businesses alive. However does the internet adaptation of this quintessential game present a lifeline, or will it not compare to its land based equivalent?
Bingo has been an established game historically played by the "blue haired" generation. For all that the game lately had undergone a recent comeback in appeal with younger men and women opting to hit the bingo halls instead of the discos on a Saturday night. This is all about to be reversed with the enforcement of the cigarette ban around United Kingdom.
Players will no longer be allowed to smoke whilst marking off their numbers. From the summer of ‘07 all public areas will no longer be allowed to permit smoking in their buildings and this includes Bingo parlors, one of the most favorite locations where many people like to puff on cigarettes.
The effects of the anti cigarette law can already be seen in Scotland where smoking is already illegal in the bingo halls. Numbers have dropped and the business is beyond a doubt struggling for to stay alive. But where have all the players gone? Certainly they have not deserted this familiar game?
The answer is online. Players realise that they can wager on bingo using their computer at the same time enjoying a cocktail and cig and in the end, have a chance at monstrous cash rewards. This is a recent development and has timed itself bordering on perfect with the ban on cigarettes.
Of course playing on the web is unlikely to replace the communal part of heading over to the bingo parlor, but for a group of players the governing edicts have left a number of bingo enthusiasts with little choice.