Tropika Island of Treasure 5: Jamaica is currently being broadcast with the dead Reeva Steenkamp as a contestant who was shot dead in the head by her boyfriend, the paralympic athlete Oscar Pistorius.
Reeva Steenkamp was shot dead and died a violent death three days before the advertiser-funded show was to start on South African television; SABC1 and the production company Stimulii decided to go ahead and show the programme.
On the day of the first episode of Tropika Island of Treasure 5: Jamaica on SABC1, Tropika gleefully tweeted about a "killer deal": 100 cases of Tropika today".
Tropika and the show received global exposure since February as news channels and news programmes across the world clamoured for clips from Tropika Island of Treasure 5: Jamaica as part of its reporting on the tragic Oscar Pistorius shooting death case.
The AFP jumped from e.tv to SABC1 for the current season. Tropika will no longer be a sponsor when the next season of the on-air marketing activation rolls around. The 6th season will take place in the Seychelles but Tropika's sponsorship is ending with the current season.
Neither Clover and Tropika, nor SABC1, nor the production company gave any reasons for the end of the sponsorship in a press statement, only saying that "the next season of Island of Treasure will see a new sponsor which will undoubtedly bring about a few exciting new changes to the format".
"Viewers should look forward to an even more entertaining season," says Vukile Madlala, SABC1 publicity manager in the statement.
Samantha Moon, Stimulii CEO says in the statement "Island of Treasure will continue to bring the hottest, quality entertainment to SA screens".
