Name this movie: Peter, Samir and Michael devise a plan to plant a virus in the company mainframe that siphons money into their personal accounts in increments so small that they are basically invisible to anyone monitoring the accounts?
Did you guess Office Space?
Now consider Ecofont.
Ecofont is a typeface that has holes so small that they are virtually negligible at sizes at or below 11pts — any larger and the holes become quite conspicuous. The result according to Dutch creators, SPRANQ, is an opportunity for ink savings that could accumulate over time, hence the Office Space reference. Despite a cloudiness to the font compared to the original letters, overall the holes have no effect on the structural integrity. This means that for bulk printing and long form copy, Ecofont could be very useful without detriment.
Snippet of text from the Ecofont Example Docutment
Ecofont Vera Sans is a free font available for download. Downloading the font is literally the only barrier to overcome for those interested. There are no price tags, subscriptions or licensing to muddy the waters. Even those concerned with having more variety to choose from will soon have Ecofont Software available to purchase (starting at about $20 USD per work station). The software will allow you to “punch holes” in any number of fonts with the click of a button. 
You wouldn’t think it would be difficult to convince businesses to make a change that costs nothing but offers monetary and environmental benefits. But let’s not forget that Ecofont is still at the mercy of a free market that pulls no punches, even if your product is a bona fide “no brainer”.
Do people seriously consider the implications of ink savings enough to seek an alternative? Ecofont claims that in a world where the average employee prints 10,000 pages per year, businesses could save up to 25% on printer ink and toner by printing with the font. The merits seem legitimate, so we’re interested to see how deeply this idea penetrates our culture. There are countless examples of products and services that seemed like “no-brainers” had they only been able to gain traction.
Ecofont seems positioned for success, set to release a new suite of software in June. The question is whether it will be visible to those who need to see it. So, here’s to you Ecofont, may your voyage be without toil. We’re rooting for you.
Can you help us think of any “no-brainer” ideas that failed to catch on but should have? How would you have improved their efforts?