A lot has been reported in the papers recently about the bingo industry being hurt because of the smoking ban in Britain. Things have become so poor that in Scotland the Bingo industry has requested big aid to assist in keeping the industry from going bankrupt. However can the online variation of this quintessential game provide a escape, or might it in no way compare to its land based opposite?
Bingo has been an familiar game generally played by the "blue haired" generation. However the game of late had witnessed a recent resurgence in acceptance with younger people opting to go to the bingo halls rather than the discos on a Saturday night. All this is about to change with the enacting of the anti smoking law all over Britain.
No more will gamblers be permitted to smoke whilst marking numbers. From the summer of 2007 every public location will no longer be allowed to permit cigarettes in their buildings and this includes Bingo parlors, one of the most common places where people like to puff on cigarettes.
The outcome of the smoking ban can already be observed in Scotland where smoking is already not allowed in the bingo halls. Players have plunged and the business is absolutely fighting for its life. But where did the players go? Of course they haven’t forgotten this ancient game?
The answer is on the net. Gamblers realize that they can gamble on bingo in front of their computer whilst enjoying a beer and cigarette and still enjoy huge jackpots. This is a recent phenomenon and has timed itself bordering on perfect with the ban on smoking.
Of course gambling on online is unlikely to replace the collective part of heading down to the bingo hall, but for a demographic of people the rules have left a lot of bingo enthusiasts with no option.
