A lot has been written in the papers not long ago regarding the bingo industry struggling because of the cigarette ban in the United Kingdom. Conditions have become so awful that in Scotland the Bingo industry has demanded massive aid to help keep the industry from going bankrupt. But will the net variation of this quintessential game offer a reprieve, or might it in no way compare to its land based relative?
Bingo is an ancient game usually played by the "blue rinse" generation. For all that the game recently had seen a recent comeback in popularity with younger people opting to go to the bingo parlours in place of the discos on a weekend. All this is about to be reversed with the enforcement of the anti cigarette law throughout UK.
No more will gamblers be able to smoke whilst marking numbers. From the summer of ‘07 all public areas will no longer be permitted to allow cigarettes in their locations and this includes Bingo parlours, which are possibly the most favored locations where players like to puff on cigarettes.
The effects of the anti smoking law can already be looked at in Scotland where smoking is already not permitted in the bingo parlours. Numbers have dropped and the business is beyond a doubt fighting for to stay alive. But where have all the players gone? Certainly they have not abandoned this established game?
The answer is online. Gamblers know that they can play bingo using their computer whilst enjoying a cocktail and smoke and still have a chance at huge cash rewards. This is a recent phenomenon and has timed itself bordering on perfect with the anti smoking law.
Of course gambling on online is unlikely to replace the communal part of going down to the bingo parlor, but for a group of men and women the governing edicts have left a good many bingo players with no option.