Perhaps you have not ventured into the world of online bingo but have wondered what all the fuss is about. Bingo has changed! Only 5 years ago bingo had an aged image. It was a game played mostly by women over 50 or the blue rinse brigade as some might say. Bingo now has a brand new image. Through clever advertising and endorsements by “A” list Celebs bingo has become perhaps more popular with the age range of 18 to 30 than ever before.

 

Live bingo has been going through a bad time with the smoking ban and the economic slowdown hitting the live bingo scene hard. For the first time ever bingo halls all over the UK are closing down. Even the 2 bingo live bingo chains Mecca and Gala have been forced to close established bingo halls throughout the UK.

 

When you start to calculate the actual cost of playing live bingo then compare it with the costs of playing online then perhaps you can see why many bingo players have switched from live to online bingo. For a night out at a local bingo hall you would expect to pay £5 travel costs, £15 for bingo tickets and perhaps at least another £10 for a drink or two or a bite to eat. Compare these costs to online bingo where you can simply play from your own home for as little as 1p a card, plus the fact that you are playing against thousands online so the prize money in most cases is much higher and you will understand why online bingo is so popular.

 

Online sites such as Virgin Bingo, Sky Bingo and Caesars Bingo look to have a bright future as analysts predict strong growth for the next five years. This is of course bad news for bingo halls which look like they are going to have a very bumpy ride over the next few years.

What Does Online Bingo Have To Offer?

 

I use to think online bingo sites just offered online bingo games. How wrong I was. I did a little research and signed up to 3 of the top online bingo sites, Virgin Bingo. Sky Bingo and Caesars Bingo. Of course all these sites did offer plenty of bingo games. All 3 sites had several bingo rooms all which had bust chat rooms. Each sites chat room was very active with plenty of general banter.

 

There was more to each site though than bingo. Perhaps my first surprise was the amount of casino type games on offer. Each of the sites I visited had a full blown online casino. Games such as Blackjack, Roulette and Video Poker were available in many forms. Also all 3 sites had a big range of slots including all the latest releases. Something I had not seen before was instant win type games. TV games shows such as Deal or no Deal and Play Your Card Right were available on all sites. I must admit I found this great fun, plus I seemed to have the winning knack playing Deal or no Deal at Virgin Bingo.

 

The age range of those playing online bingo was much broader than I imagined.  Many were aged 18 to 30 whilst there were indeed others between 30 and 70. I think the main aspect of online bingo that struck me was the community spirit each site had. When you announce you only need a few balls to win, 3TG, 2TG etc many players chirp in with encouragement. It became clear to me that all 3 sites had very strong communities so I would image most players stay loyal to the sites they play. Some players simply logged in to chat with their online friends and most seem to know each other.

 

I now understand the draw of online bingo. Yes most have the dream of winning big but many play for pennies to chat with their friends. Online bingo though is not for me although I do understand why many find it appealing.