Much has been talked in the papers just a while ago concerning the bingo industry singing the blues because of the anti cigarette law in England. Conditions have grown so poor that in Scotland the Bingo industry has demanded massive tax breaks to help keep the industry afloat. However can the online version of this traditional game provide a reprieve, or might it not compare to its bricks and mortar relative?
Bingo has been an established game usually played by the "blue haired" generation. Although the game lately had witnessed a recent comeback in popularity with younger members of society opting to go to the bingo parlours instead of the discos on a Saturday night. All this is about to change with the introduction of the smoking ban throughout United Kingdom.
No longer will enthusiasts be able to puff on cigarettes whilst dabbing numbers. Starting in the summer of 2007 every public location will not be permitted to allow cigarettes in their venues and this includes Bingo parlours, one of the most favored places where people like to puff on cigarettes.
The outcome of the smoking ban can already be looked at in Scotland where cigarettes are already not allowed in the bingo parlours. Numbers have plummeted and the business is literally struggling for to stay alive. But where have the players gone? Certainly they have not forgotten this established game?
The answer is on the net. Gamblers are now realizing that they can participate in bingo from their computer whilst enjoying a beer and smoke and still enjoy huge cash rewards. This is a recent development and has timed itself bordering on perfect with the ban on smoking.
Of course playing online could never replace the communal aspect of going down to the bingo parlor, but for a demographic of men and women the law has left a number of bingo enthusiasts with no option.