"American Idol" judge Simon Cowell is moving on. Cowell has announced that the upcoming ninth season of the hit Fox singing competition will be his last. The tart-tongued Brit says he wants to turn his focus to launching the American version "The X Factor," the British singing competition on which "Idol" is based. "X Factor" is slated to launch on the Fox network in 2011. The new season of "American Idol" begins Tuesday. As to how the show will fare in the ratings without him, Cowell told reporters in Los Angeles Monday, quote, "I am confident it will continue to be the number one show."Cowell's exit announcement follows Paula Abdul's much-talked about exit from "Idol" last August. Abdul announced she was leaving the show after weeks of back and forth with Fox about her contract. In September, producers announced that Emmy winning talk show host Ellen DeGeneres had been hired to replace Abdul in the judge's seat.
