An abundance has been talked in the press recently regarding the bingo industry struggling as a result of the cigarette ban in the UK. Conditions have grown so poor that in Scotland the Bingo industry has requested big tax cuts to help keep the businesses alive. However can the internet variation of this quintessential game provide a lifeline, or might it not compare to its bricks and mortar opposite?
Bingo is an established game generally played by the "blue haired" generation. In any case the game of late had experienced a recent comeback in popularity with younger men and women opting to visit the bingo parlours rather than the discos on a Friday night. This is all about to get flipped on its head with the introduction of the anti smoking law throughout United Kingdom.
Players will no longer be allowed to smoke whilst dabbing numbers. Beginning in the summer of ‘07 all public areas will not be allowed to permit cigarettes in their venues and this includes Bingo halls, one of the most favorite areas where people like to smoke.
The results of the cigarette ban can already be looked at in Scotland where smoking is already not permitted in the bingo parlors. Numbers have dropped and the industry is beyond a doubt struggling for to stay alive. But where did the players go? Certainly they haven’t cast aside this ancient game?
The answer is online. Players know that they can enjoy bingo using their computer whilst enjoying a cocktail and cig and still enjoy big cash rewards. This is a recent development and has happened bordering on perfect with the anti cigarette law.
Of course gambling on on the internet can never replace the collective portion of going down to the bingo parlor, but for a group of players the law has left many bingo enthusiasts with little choice.