Much has been written in the papers recently about the bingo industry being hit because of the smoking ban in the UK. Things have become so poor that in Scotland the Bingo industry has asked for massive tax breaks to help keep the industry from going bankrupt. However does the net version of this traditional game provide a escape, or will it never compare to its bricks and mortar peer?
Bingo has been an established game historically enjoyed by the "blue rinse" generation. However the game lately had undergone a recent return in appeal with younger members of society opting to go to the bingo halls in place of the clubs on a Saturday night. All this is about to get flipped on its head with the introduction of the smoking ban all over England and Wales.
No longer will enthusiasts be able to puff on cigarettes while marking off their numbers. Beginning in the summer of 2007 every public area will no longer be permitted to allow cigarettes in their buildings and this includes Bingo parlours, one of the most favorite locations where people enjoy smoking.
The outcome of the smoking ban can already be looked at in Scotland where smoking is already forbidden in the bingo parlors. Numbers have dropped and the industry is literally struggling for its life. But where have the players gone? Of course they have not abandoned this established game?
The answer is on the net. People realize that they can wager on bingo from their computer at the same time enjoying a drink and smoke and in the end, enjoy big prizes. This is a recent phenomenon and has timed itself almost perfectly with the ban on cigarettes.
Of course wagering on on the internet is unlikely to replace the collective aspect of going down to the bingo parlor, but for a demographic of men and women the law has left a lot of bingo enthusiasts with no choice.
August 28th, 2021
Tamara
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