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submitted: May 4th 2009 | by: artavia.seo | Total views: 38 | Word Count: 479 |

Recent figures and reports are showing that bingo clubs up and down the country are facing a challenging and uncertain time ahead. Already this year Buckingham Bingo has reported to have lost a massive £69million from its value due to the Alchemy Partners writing off the value of most of its stake in the company and handing it over to Barclays Bank. Gala Bingo is another who has seen its value fall after its major investors, Candover, said its stake in the firm was worthless, meanwhile the Times has reported that Permira has also written off its stake in Gala Coral.

Riva Bingos value is also showing as haven fallen after half the company was sold to Brian Mattingley while the remaining half was kept by Simon Hannah who paid just a nominal fee to keep the remaining clubs.

Holding companies are fairing little better than clubs with the likes of Top Ten Bingo and Rank showing similar slide in share and company price since the introduction of the smoking ban and the onset of the credit crunch.

There are a number of different factors contributing to the struggle clubs are facing at the moment. The smoking ban has certainly been a factor affecting many clubs as long time patrons are turning there backs on the clubs because they can no longer light up while they play. Taxation is also playing its part with new taxation rules meaning some clubs are finding themselves having to pay much higher taxes despite falling revenue. Another problem was companies taking out equity in order to buyout clients at highly inflated prices or overly expand their business, while the economy and bingo indusrty were buoyant and on the up this seemed like a good business idea, however now that both are declining it has become a huge burden that some are struggling to deal with. The slow down in the economy is another factor as it means people are spending less. Not only are more people out of work but those who still have jobs are often to scared to spend money freely as no one knows what the future will hold for there jobs and finances.

Despite this bingo is still a hugely popular pastime, in fact it is the most popular pastime among women and is increasingly becoming more popular among men. Online bingo has certainly seen the up turn in this with continued growth in revenue and the number of players. Occasionally this can have a knock on affect for offline bingo as well. Recently the Gala bingo hall in Peterborough saw a 400% growth in business, however at the moment this seems to be more of a one off than a trend, though club owners are keeping their fingers crossed that this is a sign of things to come.

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