Much has been stated in the press recently regarding the bingo industry being hit as a result of the smoking ban in Britain. Conditions have become so awful that in Scotland the Bingo industry has requested massive aid to assist in keeping the industry from going bankrupt. However can the web version of this quintessential game provide a lifeline, or might it never compare to its land based peer?

Bingo is an age old game normally enjoyed by the "blue rinse" generation. Although the game lately had seen a recent return in acceptance with younger men and women deciding to hit the bingo halls rather than the discos on a Saturday night. All this is about to get flipped on its head with the enacting of the smoking ban all over UK.

Players will no longer be permitted to puff on cigarettes while marking numbers. Starting in the summer of 2007 every public place will no longer be permitted to allow cigarettes in their venues and this includes Bingo halls, one of the most favorite locations where people enjoy smoking.

The effects of the anti smoking law can already be seen in Scotland where smoking is already prohibited in the bingo parlours. Profits have plunged and the industry is literally struggling for to stay alive. But where have all the players gone? Certainly they have not forgotten this established game?

The answer is on the net. Gamblers realize that they can wager on bingo in front of their computer whilst enjoying a cocktail and cigarette and in the end, enjoy big prizes. This is a recent development and has happened bordering on perfect with the ban on smoking.

Of course playing on the internet is unlikely to replace the collective part of heading down to the bingo parlor, but for a group of people the rules have left a number of bingo players with little choice.