A lot has been stated in the press not long ago about the bingo industry singing the blues as a result of the anti smoking law in England. Things have grown so awful that in Scotland the Bingo industry has asked for massive tax breaks to help keep the businesses from going bankrupt. However can the internet variation of this traditional game present a escape, or might it not compare to its bricks and mortar peer?
Bingo has been an classic game normally played by the "blue haired" generation. In any case the game recently had undergone a recent resurgence in acceptance with younger men and women deciding to hit the bingo halls instead of the clubs on a Friday night. All this is about to be reversed with the enforcement of the anti cigarette law all over UK.
No more will gamblers be able to smoke while marking numbers. Starting in the summer of ‘07 every public place will not be allowed to permit cigarettes in their venues and this includes Bingo halls, which are possibly the most favorite areas where players like to puff on cigarettes.
The results of the cigarette ban can already be felt in Scotland where cigarettes are already prohibited in the bingo parlors. Numbers have plummeted and the business is literally fighting for to stay alive. But where have all the players gone? Of course they haven’t abandoned this classic game?
The answer is on the internet. Gamblers realize that they can play bingo using their computer while enjoying a beverage and cig and in the end, enjoy monstrous jackpots. This is a recent anomaly and has timed itself bordering on perfect with the anti smoking law.
Of course betting on on the net could never replace the social aspect of going down to the bingo parlour, but for a demographic of people the law has left a good many bingo players with little option.