Posted by Jace | Posted in Bingo | Posted on 09-04-2021
Much has been written in the papers recently concerning the bingo industry singing the blues as a result of the anti smoking law in Britain. Things have become so poor that in Scotland the Bingo industry has demanded big tax breaks to help keep the businesses from going bankrupt. But does the internet variation of this traditional game provide a salvation, or might it never compare to its land based equivalent?
Bingo has been an enduring game generally enjoyed by the "blue haired" generation. However the game lately had experienced a recent comeback in appeal with younger members of society deciding to visit the bingo halls rather than the clubs on a Friday night. All this is about to get flipped on its head with the legislating of the cigarette ban across UK.
Players will no longer be permitted to puff on cigarettes while dabbing numbers. Starting in the summer of ‘07 every public place will not be permitted to allow smoking in their venues and this includes Bingo parlours, which are possibly the most popular locations where people like to smoke.
The outcome of the smoking ban can already be observed in Scotland where smoking is already barred in the bingo halls. Numbers have dropped and the business is literally fighting for its life. But where have the players gone? Of course they have not deserted this classic game?
The answer is on the internet. People are now realizing that they can gamble on bingo using their computer while enjoying a beer and cig and still enjoy monstrous jackpots. This is a recent anomaly and has timed itself almost perfectly with the ban on smoking.
Of course wagering on on the internet is unlikely to replace the social part of heading down to the bingo parlour, but for a group of people the rules have left a number of bingo players with little alternative.