By Samantha Williams
Online gambling is one of the most popular ways for people to spend time on the internet; in fact a recent research study shows that as much as 26% of online searches are related to online bingo. These are quite remarkable numbers and this is definitely a numbers game!
The beauty of online gambling is that people are able to go places where they might not normally be able to go, and meet people they might not normally be able to meet. As playing online bingo is only second in line in popularity to playing online poker, we look at this as an example.
New online bingo sites are still coming live onto the net every month and the surge in the popularity of this game is not about to stop. Many of these sites are designed with the social aspect of the game taking centre stage. While online casinos and poker rooms are certainly social activities which allow the players to chat and meet new people, the principle driving factor of playing at these sites is to win. Bingo is not like that, certainly not in the UK!
Firstly it is considered to be a soft gambling activity, secondly most bingo players (whether online or off) in the UK say they play for the social interaction. Their budgeting for play is motivated by the same motivation as any other form of entertainment i.e. going to the pictures, the pub or out for dinner. While winning is secondary, and in virtually every big winning story you read the players’ say, “I never expected that!”
Even thought playing bingo is still online gambling, there are generations of bingo players in the UK, and this new version of the game, is attracting the new generation which would not normally go out to land based bingo clubs. There is also sadly a trend at the moment for land based bingo clubs to close down, and this takes large centres for social interaction out of circulation. For some elderly people bingo is the only social interaction they have!
Online bingo has made this social interaction possible again. I read one letter from an 83 year old player a couple of weeks back who can’t get out and plays every day. Another 78 year old lady was banned from her local bingo (land based) club for arranging an outing to a competitor. The competing bingo company heard about this and employed her as an online bingo ambassador and she is selling this activity to her entire social circle. You hear these stories in this online gambling genre every single day.
The elderly, the infirm, people who are unable to get out of the house at the best of times, let alone in bad weather, are all learning to become computer literate so they can play bingo and socialize. So they are learning new skills, are able to communicate with overseas family members using Skype and learning to send e-mails.
When you scratch below the surface a little, there is a heck of a lot more to online gambling than meets the eye, and bingo is only one of the genre’s in which this industry operates!!
