I Dream of a World Without Paper Receipts

I was going to offer two cats to any person who could come up with a viable paperless receipt. Then I came across this. A company called allEtronic is already on it. (If allEtronic hadn't invented a paperless receipt, I would chide the company for its annoying use of camel case.) allEtronic has compiled this data:

In one month, a single big-box retailer will print enough receipts to wrap around the circumference of the Earth - twice, it says. Printing receipts burns through 9 million trees each year, allEtronic claims. And for each ton of paper that’s manufactured, it takes 390 gallons of oil and more than 19,000 gallons of water, while producing enough CO2 emissions a year to equal that of 13 million cars.

(If you still aren't sold on the need for paperless receipts, there's this.)

Anyway, here's how allEtronic's paperless receipt system works:

When allEtronic’s software recognizes the customer, it blocks the receipt from being printed and redirects the receipt to be printed digitally on its servers. . . . Customers who shop at retailers supported by allEtronic receive a paperless receipt by setting up a free allEtronic account that links to accounts for their credit or debit cards. Businesses that enlist the allEtronic service reduce the cost of providing printed receipts or coupons at checkout while also helping the environment.

Sign me up.