That's quite a stretch. Existence proof for a particular isn't hard to come by. Lots of companies (including google & facebook, ironically) blew up without sal

That's quite a stretch. Existence proof for a particular isn't hard to come by. Lots of companies (including google & facebook, ironically) blew up without sales or marketing playing a significant role. The "modern economy" OTOH, is big. Advertising (either selling or buying) a core piece of the business model of many of the largest companies. Everything that touches them touches advertising and everything that touches them is a massive part of the economy. This might suggest that advertising needn't be essential, not that it isn't. Wikipedia & Linux might suggest that IP and shareholders needn't be necessary to the modern economy. But IP and shareholders certainly are, currently, necessary to the way it works.