MTV was launched in 1981 and was very far from being a staple channel with cable networks, as it is worldwide today. This magnitude was reached by many advertising campaigns, the first, and most notable, was their "I Want My MTV!" campaign which began in 1983. The channel hired music stars of the time to appear in commercials encouraging the young viewers to contact their local cable company and demand they add MTV. The celebrities included Billy Idol, Madonna, Michael Jackson, David Bowie, and The Police, just to name a few.
The campaign resulted in MTV becoming one of most watched channels in the world90 and the phrase "I Want My MTV" is a saying as much a part of the eighties as "radical, dude!".
