Much has been reported in the papers not long ago regarding the bingo industry struggling as a consequence of the cigarette ban in the UK. Conditions have become so awful that in Scotland the Bingo industry has asked for massive aid to assist in keeping the businesses alive. But can the web adaptation of this classic game offer a escape, or might it in no way compare to its bricks and mortar equivalent?
Bingo has been an established game normally played by the "blue rinse" generation. However the game of late had undergone a recent resurgence in acceptance with younger members of society opting to go to the bingo parlors rather than the clubs on a Saturday night. This is all about to change with the legislating of the cigarette ban all over Britain.
No more will enthusiasts be permitted to puff on cigarettes whilst marking numbers. Starting in the summer of 2007 every public area will no longer be permitted to allow smoking in their locations and this includes Bingo parlors, which are possibly the most common locations where players enjoy smoking.
The outcome of the anti cigarette law can already be observed in Scotland where cigarettes are already not allowed in the bingo parlours. Numbers have dropped and the business is beyond a doubt struggling for its life. But where did the players go? Surely they have not cast aside this established game?
The answer is online. Gamblers are now realizing that they can play bingo in front of their computer whilst enjoying a beer and cig and in the end, enjoy monstrous prizes. This is a recent phenomenon and has timed itself bordering on perfect with the ban on cigarettes.
Of course wagering on on the internet is unlikely to replace the collective part of going over to the bingo parlor, but for a group of people the rules have left a good many bingo players with little option.