LOVE Island’s days could be numbered as fashion insiders predict the “beginning of the end” in the wake of the social media ban.
The ITV2 programme has been a fan favourite for the last eight years – producing big names like Molly-Mae Hague and Gemma Owen who have signed mega money deals with PrettyLittleThing.
PrettyLittleThings revealed it won’t sign anyone from this series[/caption]
But the online fast-fashion giant has now revealed that it will not sign anyone from the most recent series.
This was due to the winners having a smaller Instagram following compared to previous contestants.
“There are fewer applicants for Love Island this summer. The ban has exposed what we all know: that the show is all about landing lucrative deals, not finding love,” a source told The MoS.
Before the show kicked off, Love Island announced that family and friends of the Islanders were now banned from posting on their social media accounts during the show, instead accounts will be dormant.
All contestants changed their bio on Instagram to “I’m off to find love in the Love Island villa. See you soon!”
This means Islanders were unable to build their following while on the show.
Winners Kai Fagan and Sanam Harrinanan finished the series last Monday with just 173,000 and 153,000 Instagram followers respectively.
While Gemma Owen, who appeared on the dating show last year, ended with over a million followers.
This year there are no Islanders with more than a million followers on Instagram.
In past series, Islanders use their accounts to encourage viewers to vote for them and build up their following.
However, they were often subject to vile abuse from trolls and there were even occasional spats between contestants’ family and friends.
Love Island bosses said at the time: “As part of extended measures to protect both the Islanders and their families from the adverse effects of social media, participants will be asked to pause handles and accounts on their social media platforms for the duration of their time on the show.
“Islanders’ accounts will remain dormant while they are in the Villa, so that nothing is published on their behalf.”
Molly-Mae Hague is now the creative director for PLT[/caption]
The online fashion brand also signed Gemma Owen – who left the show with a million followers[/caption]