A lot has been talked in the press not long ago about the bingo industry singing the blues as a consequence of the anti cigarette law in Britain. Things have grown so awful that in Scotland the Bingo industry has called for big tax breaks to help keep the industry from going bankrupt. However will the internet variation of this classic game provide a escape, or might it in no way compare to its land based relative?
Bingo has been an familiar game generally played by the "blue rinse" generation. In any case the game lately had seen a recent increase in popularity with younger men and women opting to go to the bingo parlours in place of the discos on a Saturday night. All this is about to change with the enacting of the anti smoking law across England and Wales.
No longer will gamblers be allowed to puff on cigarettes at the same time dabbing numbers. Beginning in the summer of ‘07 all public areas will not be permitted to allow smoking in their locations and this includes Bingo parlors, which are possibly the most common areas where people like to puff on cigarettes.
The outcome of the anti cigarette law can already be seen in Scotland where cigarettes are already barred in the bingo parlors. Numbers have plunged and the industry is literally fighting for its life. But where did the players go? Surely they haven’t deserted this ancient game?
The answer is online. Gamblers know that they can play bingo from their computer at the same time enjoying a beverage and smoke and in the end, enjoy monstrous prizes. This is a recent anomaly and has happened just about perfectly with the ban on smoking.
Of course betting on on the net will never replace the collective part of going over to the bingo parlour, but for a group of players the governing edicts have left a good many bingo enthusiasts with no option.