A lot has been written in the papers just a while ago about the bingo industry singing the blues because of the smoking ban in the UK. Things have become so bad that in Scotland the Bingo industry has asked for big tax breaks to assist in keeping the businesses from going bankrupt. But does the internet version of this traditional game present a escape, or might it never compare to its bricks and mortar relative?
Bingo has been an established game usually played by the "blue rinse" generation. For all that the game lately had undergone a recent increase in appeal with younger people deciding to hit the bingo halls instead of the clubs on a Friday night. This is all about to get flipped on its head with the introduction of the anti cigarette law throughout UK.
Players will no longer be allowed to puff on cigarettes at the same time dabbing numbers. From the summer of 2007 all public areas will not be permitted to allow cigarettes in their locations and this includes Bingo parlours, one of the most popular places where folks enjoy smoking.
The results of the anti smoking law can already be seen in Scotland where smoking is already prohibited in the bingo parlors. Profits have dropped and the business is absolutely fighting for its life. But where did all the players go? Certainly they have not forgotten this established game?
The answer is online. People realize that they can play bingo using their computer at the same time enjoying a cocktail and cigarette and in the end, have a chance at monstrous cash rewards. This is a recent anomaly and has timed itself bordering on perfect with the ban on smoking.
Of course playing on the web is unlikely to replace the collective portion of heading down to the bingo parlour, but for a demographic of people the law has left a lot of bingo enthusiasts with little option.