A lot has been talked in the press just a while ago regarding the bingo industry being hurt because of the smoking ban in Britain. Things have become so bad that in Scotland the Bingo industry has asked for massive aid to help keep the industry alive. But can the web version of this quintessential game provide a lifeline, or might it in no way compare to its real life opposite?
Bingo has been an enduring game normally played by the "blue haired" generation. However the game of late had undergone a recent resurgence in acceptance with younger men and women opting to visit the bingo parlours rather than the clubs on a Friday night. All this is about to change with the enforcement of the anti smoking law around England and Wales.
Players will no longer be allowed to smoke at the same time dabbing numbers. Beginning in the summer of ‘07 all public locations will not be allowed to permit smoking in their locations and this includes Bingo parlours, one of the most common locations where players like to smoke.
The effects of the cigarette ban can already be observed in Scotland where smoking is already not allowed in the bingo parlors. Players have dropped and the business is beyond a doubt fighting for to stay alive. But where have all the players gone? Certainly they haven’t cast aside this enduring game?
The answer is online. Players realise that they can enjoy bingo using their computer while enjoying a beverage and cig and in the end, enjoy huge jackpots. This is a recent development and has timed itself bordering on perfect with the anti smoking law.
Of course gambling on on the web can never replace the social aspect of going over to the bingo parlor, but for a demographic of players the rules have left a lot of bingo players with little alternative.