Can the Anti Smoking Law in Britain Drive Bingo Enthusiasts Online?
Much has been written in the papers not long ago concerning the bingo industry struggling because of the anti smoking law in Britain. Things have grown so bad that in Scotland the Bingo industry has asked for huge tax breaks to assist in keeping the businesses from going bankrupt. But does the internet variation of this classic game provide a salvation, or might it never compare to its land based peer?
Bingo is an established game historically enjoyed by the "blue rinse" generation. For all that the game lately had seen a recent increase in popularity with younger men and women opting to visit the bingo halls instead of the bars on a Friday night. All this is about to be destroyed with the enforcement of the anti smoking law throughout Britain.
Players will no longer be able to puff on cigarettes whilst dabbing numbers. From the summer of ‘07 every public area will not be allowed to permit smoking in their buildings and this includes Bingo parlors, which are possibly the most common areas where folks like to puff on cigarettes.
The effects of the anti cigarette law can already be felt in Scotland where smoking is already barred in the bingo halls. Profits have plunged and the business is absolutely struggling for to stay alive. But where did the players go? Certainly they have not abandoned this established game?
The answer is on the net. Gamblers realise that they can participate in bingo in front of their computer whilst enjoying a beer and smoke and in the end, enjoy monstrous prizes. This is a recent phenomenon and has happened almost perfectly with the ban on smoking.
Of course playing on the internet could never replace the social portion of going over to the bingo parlor, but for a group of players the governing edicts have left a lot of bingo players with no choice.