Posted by Roberta | Posted in Best Bingo Articles | Posted on 07-03-2010
These days we are seeing many merges in the global industry and bingo has not survived the trend. The format of the business partnerships is that the weaker members of the industry are swallowed up by the big sharks something that lead to situation where the major bingo companies dominating the industry. If you are a small scale bingo company, the chances of you surviving the new phenomenon range from slim to none. Is this a desirable development? The question has divided opinion and I intend to explore some of the major themes that would affect the scenarios.
I have always thought of bingo as a localized activity that is based on community, relationships and working together. The bingo hall was akin to the community centre and it would bring together people from all walks of life so that they could enjoy this activity. The entrance of the big boys has always had the effect of removing the community aspect of any economic activity. They bring with them a zeal for making profits that means that the other intangible things that make the game are necessarily ignored. Some people would say that the growth of the big companies within bingo business has ripped the soul out of the whole thing.
The big companies will then counter with the argument that they have developed online bingo to levels that were previously thought to be impossible. They have added a level of professionalism to bingo which should be appreciated by all but the most skeptical of cynics. They point to the relative inefficiency of small outlets to drive their point home. The bingo industry cannot afford to remain trapped in the old fashioned parochial structures. It needs to embrace the big business values of modern capitalism in order to grow. For the big boys, the takeover of bingo was almost inevitable given the way that the economic climate was going.
Normally I would be looking for compromise from two virtually opposing schools of thought. However on this occasion I feel that I have to come down in support of the community aspect of bingo. The big companies are commercializing what should never have been commercial. When I see elderly ladies playing bingo at the hall, I do not see profit signs but a community looking after their own. The pound signs ethos will rip the heart out of some communities and can only be seen as a negative development.
In my opinion bingo should always remain a community pastime. The fragile links that bind the community together should never be sold in exchange for the never ending money trail.