Much has been talked in the press recently regarding the bingo industry being hurt as a result of the cigarette ban in England. Conditions have grown so awful that in Scotland the Bingo industry has requested huge tax breaks to help keep the businesses from going bankrupt. However will the internet version of this traditional game provide a salvation, or will it never compare to its bricks and mortar peer?
Bingo has been an ancient game normally enjoyed by the "blue haired" generation. Although the game lately had seen a recent return in acceptance with younger men and women deciding to visit the bingo parlors instead of the clubs on a weekend. All this is about to be destroyed with the enacting of the anti cigarette law all over England and Wales.
Players will no longer be able to puff on cigarettes at the same time dabbing numbers. From the summer of ‘07 every public location will no longer be permitted to allow cigarettes in their buildings and this includes Bingo parlours, which are possibly the most common locations where many people like to puff on cigarettes.
The effects of the anti smoking law can already be looked at in Scotland where cigarettes are already forbidden in the bingo parlors. Players have plunged and the industry is literally fighting for its life. But where did all the players go? Obviously they haven’t abandoned this enduring game?
The answer is on the web. People are now realizing that they can gamble on bingo in front of their computer whilst enjoying a beverage and cig and in the end, have a chance at big jackpots. This is a recent anomaly and has happened bordering on perfect with the ban on smoking.
Of course betting on on the internet is unlikely to replace the collective aspect of heading over to the bingo parlor, but for a demographic of players the governing edicts have left many bingo players with little alternative.