[ English ]

Much has been written in the press not long ago regarding the bingo industry singing the blues as a result of the smoking ban in the United Kingdom. Things have grown so poor that in Scotland the Bingo industry has demanded massive tax breaks to assist in keeping the businesses alive. But does the web version of this classic game provide a lifeline, or will it in no way compare to its land based kin?

Bingo has been an enduring game normally played by the "blue haired" generation. Although the game of late had witnessed a recent return in acceptance with younger members of society opting to visit the bingo halls in place of the bars on a weekend. All this is about to be destroyed with the introduction of the smoking ban all over England and Wales.

Players will no longer be able to puff on cigarettes at the same time dabbing numbers. Beginning in the summer of ‘07 all public places will not be allowed to permit cigarettes in their locations and this includes Bingo parlours, which are possibly the most popular areas where players like to smoke.

The outcome of the smoking ban can already be looked at in Scotland where cigarettes are already not allowed in the bingo halls. Players have plunged and the business is beyond a doubt struggling for to stay alive. But where did the players go? Obviously they haven’t given up on this classic game?

The answer is on the net. People are now realizing that they can participate in bingo using their computer while enjoying a drink and fag and in the end, enjoy monstrous jackpots. This is a recent development and has timed itself bordering on perfect with the ban on cigarettes.

Of course playing on the net can never replace the collective portion of heading down to the bingo hall, but for a demographic of players the governing edicts have left many bingo players with no option.