Much has been talked in the press just a while ago regarding the bingo industry singing the blues because of the anti smoking law in England. Things have become so poor that in Scotland the Bingo industry has called for huge aid to assist in keeping the businesses afloat. However does the internet variation of this classic game provide a escape, or might it not compare to its bricks and mortar peer?
Bingo has been an ancient game usually enjoyed by the "blue rinse" generation. For all that the game recently had undergone a recent return in appeal with younger people opting to hit the bingo halls rather than the clubs on a Saturday night. All this is about to change with the introduction of the anti smoking law throughout United Kingdom.
Players will no longer be allowed to puff on cigarettes at the same time marking numbers. Starting in the summer of 2007 every public area will no longer be allowed to permit cigarettes in their buildings and this includes Bingo halls, one of the most common areas where many people enjoy smoking.
The outcome of the smoking ban can already be looked at in Scotland where smoking is already prohibited in the bingo halls. Players have plummeted and the business is beyond a doubt fighting for its life. But where have all the players gone? Surely they have not abandoned this enduring game?
The answer is online. People know that they can enjoy bingo in front of their computer at the same time enjoying a cocktail and fag and still have a chance at massive prizes. This is a recent anomaly and has timed itself bordering on perfect with the ban on cigarettes.
Of course gambling on on the internet is unlikely to replace the social part of going over to the bingo hall, but for a demographic of players the rules have left a number of bingo enthusiasts with no choice.