Signs and Advertising

There are two possibly related things I've noticed about Australia during my stay here.

The first is that there seems to be an excess of signage. There is one for almost everything - when to wash your hand, where to walk, which lane to drive in (and how many demerits you'll receive if you don't) and even that you're driving down the wrong way on a slip road.

But more interesting to me was the sheer amount of advertising about. From billboards, to sponsorships to advertorials it really is a striking amount. Once again it's a stark contrast to the UK and indicative to me the different levels of controls present in the respective countries.

Perhaps the people here are more influenced by/receptive to visual signs and stuff?