A lot has been written in the press just a while ago concerning the bingo industry being hurt as a consequence of the smoking ban in the UK. Things have grown so bad that in Scotland the Bingo industry has requested big tax cuts to help keep the businesses alive. However will the online version of this classic game present a escape, or will it not compare to its real life opposite?
Bingo is an ancient game normally enjoyed by the "blue rinse" generation. For all that the game lately had experienced a recent increase in acceptance with younger members of society opting to hit the bingo halls in place of the bars on a Saturday night. All this is about to change with the enforcement of the smoking ban around Britain.
No more will players be permitted to smoke at the same time dabbing numbers. Starting in the summer of ‘07 every public location will no longer be permitted to allow cigarettes in their buildings and this includes Bingo halls, which are possibly the most popular areas where folks like to smoke.
The outcome of the anti cigarette law can already be felt in Scotland where smoking is already prohibited in the bingo parlors. Numbers have dropped and the business is absolutely fighting for to stay alive. But where did the players go? Surely they haven’t deserted this established game?
The answer is on the internet. Players know that they can wager on bingo in front of their computer at the same time enjoying a drink and fag and in the end, have a chance at huge cash rewards. This is a recent phenomenon and has timed itself bordering on perfect with the anti cigarette law.
Of course betting on online is unlikely to replace the collective portion of going down to the bingo hall, but for a demographic of people the governing edicts have left a good many bingo players with no option.