An abundance has been written in the press recently regarding the bingo industry being hurt as a result of the smoking ban in England. Conditions have grown so poor that in Scotland the Bingo industry has demanded massive aid to help keep the industry afloat. However can the online version of this classic game provide a salvation, or might it in no way compare to its bricks and mortar opposite?
Bingo has been an enduring game historically enjoyed by the "blue rinse" generation. However the game lately had witnessed a recent comeback in appeal with younger members of society opting to hit the bingo parlours in place of the discos on a Saturday night. This is all about to be reversed with the enforcement of the anti smoking law all over England and Wales.
Players will no longer be allowed to smoke whilst marking off their numbers. Beginning in the summer of 2007 every public place will not be permitted to allow cigarettes in their venues and this includes Bingo halls, which are possibly the most favorite places where folks enjoy smoking.
The outcome of the anti cigarette law can already be observed in Scotland where cigarettes are already illegal in the bingo halls. Players have dropped and the industry is literally fighting for to stay alive. But where have all the players gone? Obviously they have not cast aside this age old game?
The answer is online. Players realise that they can gamble on bingo in front of their computer whilst enjoying a drink and cigarette and in the end, have a chance at monstrous prizes. This is a recent phenomenon and has happened almost perfectly with the anti smoking law.
Of course playing on the net will never replace the collective portion of going over to the bingo parlor, but for a group of men and women the law has left a lot of bingo players with little alternative.
