Archive for November, 2015

Might the Cigarette Ban in the United Kingdom Force Bingo Enthusiasts Online?

A lot has been talked in the press not long ago regarding the bingo industry being hit as a consequence of the smoking ban in England. Conditions have grown so poor that in Scotland the Bingo industry has called for massive aid to assist in keeping the industry from going bankrupt. However can the online version of this classic game offer a salvation, or might it in no way compare to its real life kin?

Bingo has been an age old game generally played by the "blue haired" generation. However the game of late had undergone a recent return in popularity with younger members of society opting to hit the bingo halls in place of the bars on a Saturday night. This is all about to be reversed 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 off their numbers. Starting in the summer of ‘07 all public locations will no longer be permitted to allow smoking in their locations and this includes Bingo parlours, which are possibly the most popular locations where players enjoy smoking.

The effects of the smoking ban can already be observed in Scotland where cigarettes are already not permitted in the bingo parlours. Numbers have plummeted and the industry is absolutely fighting for its life. But where did the players go? Certainly they haven’t forgotten this established game?

The answer is on the net. Gamblers realise that they can play bingo from their computer at the same time enjoying a cocktail and fag and still enjoy big prizes. This is a recent development and has timed itself bordering on perfect with the ban on cigarettes.

Of course betting on online is unlikely to replace the collective aspect of heading down to the bingo hall, but for a demographic of men and women the law has left many bingo enthusiasts with little choice.

 

New Mexico Bingo

New Mexico has a rocky gaming past. When the IGRA was passed by Congress in Nineteen Eighty Nine, it looked like New Mexico might be one of the states to get on the Amerindian casino bandwagon. Politics assured that wouldn’t be the situation.

The New Mexico governor Bruce King assembled a task force in Nineteen Ninety to create an accord with New Mexico American Indian bands. When the working group came to an agreement with 2 prominent local tribes a year later, Governor King refused to sign the agreement. He held up a deal until Nineteen Ninety Four.

When a new governor took over in 1995, it appeared that Amerindian betting in New Mexico was a certainty. But when the new Governor passed the compact with the American Indian bands, anti-gambling groups were able to hold the contract up in the courts. A New Mexico court found that the Governor had overstepped his bounds in signing the accord, therefore denying the state of New Mexico hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing revenues over the next several years.

It required the Compact Negotiation Act, passed by the New Mexico government, to get the process moving on a full accord amongst the State of New Mexico and its Indian bands. A decade had been lost for gambling in New Mexico, including Amerindian casino Bingo.

The non-profit Bingo business has increased from Nineteen Ninety-Nine. In that year, New Mexico not for profit game operators brought in just $3,048. That climbed to $725,150 in 2000, and passed a million dollars in 2001. Non-profit Bingo earnings have grown steadily since then. 2005 saw the biggest year, with $1,233,289 grossed by the providers.

Bingo is apparently beloved in New Mexico. All types of operators look for a piece of the pie. With hope, the politicians are through batting around gaming as an important factor like they did back in the 90’s. That’s without doubt hopeful thinking.