Could the Smoking Ban in the United Kingdom Take Bingo Players On to the Internet?
Much has been reported in the papers not long ago concerning the bingo industry being hit because of the anti smoking law in England. Conditions have grown so bad that in Scotland the Bingo industry has requested big aid to help keep the businesses from going bankrupt. However does the web variation of this classic game present a salvation, or will it never compare to its land based opposite?
Bingo has been an established game generally played by the "blue haired" generation. However the game of late had seen a recent increase in popularity with younger members of society opting to go to the bingo parlors in place of the clubs on a Saturday night. All this is about to change with the enforcement of the anti cigarette law around UK.
Players will no longer be allowed to smoke whilst marking off their numbers. Starting in the summer of ‘07 all public areas will not be permitted to allow smoking in their buildings and this includes Bingo parlours, which are possibly the most favored locations where people enjoy smoking.
The effects of the anti smoking law can already be looked at in Scotland where cigarettes are already banned in the bingo parlors. Players have dropped and the business is beyond a doubt struggling for to stay alive. But where did all the players go? Certainly they have not forgotten this ancient game?
The answer is on the web. People realise that they can bet on bingo using their computer whilst enjoying a cocktail and cigarette and in the end, have a chance at monstrous jackpots. This is a recent development and has timed itself bordering on perfect with the ban on cigarettes.
Of course betting on on the net is unlikely to replace the communal part of going down to the bingo parlour, but for a demographic of men and women the rules have left a lot of bingo players with little option.