La publicité déchaînée de l'Italie des années 80

<jats:p>This article analyzes the growth of advertising in Italy which is impressive in quantitative terms: investments in ads have been multiplied by 2.5 between 1980 and 1989. Two main factors explain this situation: on one hand, the mutation of the distribution sector and the prevailing and growing importance of the brand over the product; on the other hand, the evolution of the media which have less political but more economic power. Other elements have also to be taken into accounts: the commercial aggressiveness of TV advertisers and the transformation of the Italian society leading to the building up of a TV audience. Over a decade, the Italian advertising scene has changed in radical terms and its effects can already be felt in other areas: in firms, in politics, in language... </jats:p>