Much has been talked in the papers just a while ago concerning the bingo industry singing the blues because of the anti cigarette law in Britain. Conditions have grown so poor that in Scotland the Bingo industry has called for massive tax cuts to help keep the businesses from going bankrupt. However does the online version of this classic game offer a reprieve, or will it never compare to its land based opposite?
Bingo is an ancient game generally enjoyed by the "blue rinse" generation. However the game lately had undergone a recent increase in appeal with younger people deciding to hit the bingo halls rather than the bars on a weekend. This is all about to be reversed with the enforcement of the smoking ban throughout Britain.
Players will no longer be permitted to puff on cigarettes whilst marking off their numbers. Beginning in the summer of 2007 all public locations will no longer be allowed to permit cigarettes in their locations and this includes Bingo parlors, which are possibly the most common areas where many people like to smoke.
The effects of the anti smoking law can already be observed in Scotland where cigarettes are already illegal in the bingo parlors. Players have plunged and the industry is beyond a doubt fighting for its life. But where have the players gone? Of course they have not cast aside this familiar game?
The answer is on the web. People realise that they can play bingo using their computer while enjoying a beverage and cig and still have a chance at big prizes. This is a recent development and has timed itself almost perfectly with the anti cigarette law.
Of course betting on on the net can never replace the communal aspect of heading over to the bingo parlour, but for a group of people the rules have left a good many bingo players with no choice.