Land Based vs. Online Bingo

During the ongoing global financial crisis most people struggle with financial uncertainty. Many working people are justifiably worries about losing their job as unemployment figures rise to the highest level since the great depression of the 1930’s. Bingo players are no different from most people and share many of the same concerns and are cutting back on unnecessary expenses along with everyone else. Many land based bingo players report that they have cut back on regular visits to their favorite bingo clubs. A visit to a land based bingo hall has ancillary expenses such as transportation, fuel, parking, admission fees and the purchase of bingo cards. For mothers there are always babysitting expenses and good babysitters do not come cheap anymore. In the UK which is the world’s largest bingo market land based operators report dismal attendance figures and land based operators have ongoing expenses like rent, utilities, employees and tax liabilities.

Online bingo avoids most of these expenses associated with running a brick and mortar bingo operation. Running a website is not all that expensive and many bingo providers become part of a ‘bingo network’ where much of the actual site operation is done by the owners of proprietary bingo software. This gives online bingo providers a clear advantage. Coupled with the fact that most bingo sites are located offshore in jurisdictions where the tax liability is favorable it becomes clear that online bingo providers have a definite advantage over their land based counterparts. In the US where, legally, bingo is confined to land based operations figures have not been favorable. In Ohio one Catholic parish was forced to increase tuition for their parochial school due to languishing bingo revenues.

For online bingo providers and players most of these challenges do not exist. Online players need only an internet connection and a credit card to play. No travel, fuel or other expenses and best of all most online bingo sites offer players generous deposit bonuses and free bingo for real cash. The competition for players has resulted in bigger bonuses, more promotions and huge jackpots and unique prizes making it hard for land based bingo halls to compete. While no one expects land based bingo to disappear the future of bingo is clearly in the hands of online bingo providers and players.

By Anthony Wayne
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