The Popularity of Bingo in the UK

Bingo was traditionally a game that was played in community halls and other such places where people gathered for festivities, celebrations, etc. This was generally the trend till the Internet came along. The gambling industry realized the tremendous potential of the Internet, and the rest, as they say, is history. However, unlike some of the other gambling games, bingo has always been popular, even before the Internet came along.

As in the rest of the world, bingo has become hugely popular in the UK nowadays. While the game was already popular in the UK even before it went online, the popularity of the game soared even higher once online bingo made its appearance. You only have to take a look at the numbers to realize how popular bingo has become on the Internet. The combined stakes of both the online and offline versions of bingo in UK stands at a mammoth 1.1 billion. The amount that the customs and excise departments collect annually as a result of duty from bingo is a huge 115 million.

So what are the reasons for the popularity of bingo in the UK? As mentioned earlier, unlike many other games, the popularity is not limited to the online industry alone. Bingo was popular in the UK as far back as 1974, decades before the arrival of the Internet. The popularity in those times did not really translate into big money. In those days, bingo was more a game that was played at social or community gatherings for fun and entertainment.

The feeling of community was very much apparent from the fact that the more people that played the game, the merrier it became. Another factor that pointed to the fun element was the winning of gifts and prizes instead of money at times. The money element came into play much later. During the days when the traditional version of bingo was popular, the emphasis was on enjoyment.

However, the popularity of the game dipped steadily beyond that year. Things changed radically once the game of bingo went online in UK. The reasons for the resurgence of bingos popularity in UK were quite simple. The primary factor was a well thought out and sustained campaign to increase the awareness about the game among the people. Besides, the ability of the Internet to reach a person at his house instead of having the person try and reach out, and concessions made by the British government for the promotion of the game are the other main factors.

One of the reasons for the surge in popularity of bingo is the fact that a lot of celebrities are avid fans of the game. A celebrity name is a good way of drawing interest, and it has worked wonderfully for bingo. The names are fabulous British model Elle McPherson, former President of the United States of America Bill Clinton, and Formula One racer Damon Hill are some of the celebrities associated with bingo in the UK. These are the people who have made the traditional offline version a prisoner.

Another reason for the popularity of bingo in the UK is certainly the offer made by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown, in which he proposed to cut the duty levied on bingo in the UK generally and replace it instead with a scheme, whereby the operator would have to pay a tax on her/his income from the game. In fact, a study conducted by Lehmann Brothers, an investment banking firm, states this reduction could shoot upwards of 70%, and that is a great loss by any yardstick. This scheme has met with widespread approval in Asia, and is expected to kick off soon.

The popularity of online bingo in UK is dependent on other issues compared to that of offline, traditional, bingo. These issues include user friendly software, the availability of snazzy interfaces, flashy sites with well laid-out content, etc. are some of the things that go a long way in making online bingo popular. One may not be too sure that bingo is the future of online gambling; but the fact of its popularity in the UK is something that you can never doubt.