An abundance has been talked in the press recently concerning the bingo industry singing the blues because of the anti smoking law in Britain. Things have grown so bad that in Scotland the Bingo industry has requested huge tax breaks to assist in keeping the industry afloat. However does the web variation of this quintessential game offer a reprieve, or will it not compare to its bricks and mortar relative?

Bingo has been an established game generally enjoyed by the "blue haired" generation. Although the game of late had experienced a recent increase in acceptance with younger members of society opting to hit the bingo parlors rather than the bars on a weekend. All this is about to get flipped on its head with the enacting of the cigarette ban throughout England and Wales.

Players will no longer be able to puff on cigarettes at the same time marking numbers. Starting in the summer of 2007 every public location will no longer be permitted to allow cigarettes in their venues and this includes Bingo halls, one of the most popular locations where players like to smoke.

The effects of the anti cigarette law can already be felt in Scotland where smoking is already prohibited in the bingo parlors. Profits have plunged and the industry is beyond a doubt fighting for to stay alive. But where have all the players gone? Obviously they haven’t deserted this classic game?

The answer is on the web. Players know that they can participate in bingo from their computer whilst enjoying a cocktail and cigarette and still have a chance at massive prizes. This is a recent phenomenon and has happened bordering on perfect with the ban on cigarettes.

Of course gambling on on the net can never replace the communal part of going down to the bingo parlor, but for a demographic of men and women the law has left a number of bingo players with no alternative.