A lot has been stated in the press not long ago concerning the bingo industry being hit as a consequence of the cigarette ban in England. Things have become so bad that in Scotland the Bingo industry has requested massive aid to help keep the businesses from going bankrupt. However can the web variation of this traditional game present a escape, or might it not compare to its bricks and mortar kin?
Bingo is an enduring game usually played by the "blue rinse" generation. For all that the game recently had seen a recent increase in appeal with younger members of society 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 around UK.
Players will no longer be able to puff on cigarettes while dabbing numbers. Starting in the summer of 2007 all public areas will not be allowed to permit cigarettes in their locations and this includes Bingo parlours, which are possibly the most common locations where many people like to puff on cigarettes.
The outcome of the cigarette ban can already be felt in Scotland where cigarettes are already banned in the bingo parlours. Profits have dropped and the business is absolutely fighting for to stay alive. But where have the players gone? Of course they haven’t given up on this age old game?
The answer is on the web. Players realise that they can wager on bingo from their computer while enjoying a drink and smoke and still have a chance at big jackpots. This is a recent development and has timed itself almost perfectly with the anti cigarette law.
Of course playing on the internet can never replace the communal portion of heading over to the bingo parlour, but for a group of players the rules have left a good many bingo players with little choice.