Despite the economic stratification of north and south, contemporary Italians are a highly secular, modern people. The economy is strong and firmly integrated with the European Union and the population of roughly 57.6 million people enjoy all the trappings of first world modernity. Italians work hard, but also live well, and tourists from around the world flock to Italy's ancient archeological ruins and well-preserved Renaissance architecture and art. The legacy of Italian creativity has had a profound influence on the Italian populace, breeding a people that is very fashionable, chic, and aesthetically conscious. The northern city of Milan, arguably the fashion capital of the world, casts a long shadow over the rest of the country. Given the Italian obsession with beauty and image, it would seem apparent that Apple's elegant design would make the company a player in the Italian computing market.

While Apple has a presence in Italy, it is far from a major computing company, having less market share in Italy than in the United States. Michael Sclascia, head of a Mac user group based in Campania, a region that includes the city of Naples in the south, believes this is because Italians are seldom actually exposed to Apple products. "Many people don't even know about the existence of Apple and operating systems other than Windows," says Sclascia. "This is due to the great majority of Wintel PCs like anywhere else in the world, but in my opinion, is because of the lack of advertising and support by Apple."

It is true that Apple concentrates most of its publicity efforts in the United States while also working for exposure in emerging markets like Japan and Britain. But in Italy Apple computers receive minimal advertising. Perhaps the most common exposure Apple gets in Italian media is accidental - in furniture adverts. Nicola, a graphic designer for print and web-based media in Rimini, a city on the Adriatic coast, east of Florence, notes, "There is not one single furniture advertisement without a Mac on some table." But Apple itself invests a minimum of money and effort into projecting its brand upon the Italian computing landscape.

The lack of exposure leads to Italian consumers using price as their primary purchasing consideration. "The quality of the Apple brand is great, and prices have even been lowered," says Nicola. "Compared to the rest of Europe, Italy finally has the same prices (for Apple computers) as France and Germany. But Italy's average wage is 30 to 40 percent lower than those countries. So people here always go for the cheaper machine and the ones that everybody else uses. Quality has always been a privilege for the few, whether they can afford it or understand it."

Nicola's lamentation is aptly demonstrated in Italy's graphic design sector. While Apple has a barebones share of the majority of the Italian computing market, with most banks and businesses relying on Wintel machines, the company has a near monopoly on the graphic design market. "Nearly one hundred percent of the print designers are Mac-based," says Nicola. Apple has also penetrated the film and music markets in Italy, much as they have in the rest of their global markets. "Professional music studios are big on Apple," notes Nicola, "and lately the media production studios for TV and DVD are doing almost everything with FinalCut-DVD Studio Pro suites."

But even the creative sector's loyalty to Apple is tested at times. Says Sclascia, "Apple tends to support only direct sales by its Apple store, either online or on the phone, often neglecting their older, loyal, authorized resellers." The policy is one that many Apple resellers around the world have complained about. Apple seems to be consolidating its sales presence, often muscling out resellers they've worked with for years. The lack of reseller relationships with Apple hurts sales. "In Italy you don't usually find Macs in big retail stores, and when you do, the sales personnel don't know anything about them. They usually suggest you buy a Wintel machine. Apple doesn't seem to understand that Italy isn't like the United States. We don't usually buy computers on the web, and contact with a reseller is important. I can't imagine switchers who would buy a Mac without first having a look at it in a store."