An abundance has been reported in the press not long ago about the bingo industry struggling because of the anti cigarette law in Britain. Things have grown so bad that in Scotland the Bingo industry has demanded huge aid to assist in keeping the industry from going bankrupt. However will the online version of this classic game provide a lifeline, or will it never compare to its real life opposite?

Bingo has been an ancient game generally enjoyed by the "blue rinse" generation. However the game lately had witnessed a recent increase in popularity with younger men and women deciding to go to the bingo halls instead of the bars on a Saturday night. All this is about to get flipped on its head with the legislating of the anti cigarette law all over England and Wales.

Players will no longer be allowed to smoke while marking numbers. From the summer of 2007 all public areas will no longer be permitted to allow smoking in their locations and this includes Bingo halls, which are possibly the most favored places where people enjoy smoking.

The effects of the cigarette ban can already be felt in Scotland where cigarettes are already banned in the bingo halls. Numbers have plummeted and the industry is beyond a doubt struggling for to stay alive. But where have the players gone? Surely they haven’t given up on this ancient game?

The answer is on the net. Players realise that they can participate in bingo in front of their computer at the same time enjoying a beer and smoke and in the end, have a chance at massive cash rewards. This is a recent development and has timed itself just about perfectly with the ban on smoking.

Of course gambling on on the net could never replace the social aspect of going over to the bingo hall, but for a demographic of men and women the rules have left a lot of bingo enthusiasts with no choice.