14 DAY TRIAL // It’s no wonder Simon Cowell is considered among the few people to have shaped the face of television: his X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent are officially the most successful television shows in the UK.
In fact, they’re so successful that Cowell has just signed a new £100 million deal with ITV to keep the shows on the network for another 3 years.
While Simon doesn’t get to pocket this money, the incredibly lucrative amount speaks volumes for how well the two shows are doing, with ratings recording a boost in recent weeks.
Aside from the £100 million, which will be split between his SyCo label and production company Talkback Thames, Simon may also sign a new £20 million individual talent deal, the Daily Mail says.
“The X Factor’s live shows are expensive to make. They cost about £1.5 million per weekend – but the deal will still leave Cowell with a profit,” the Mail points out.
“However, he makes his real money from the spin-off music sales, phone revenues, and program sales abroad as well as his individual talent deal,” says the same publication.
When Britain’s Got Talent returns on television next spring, it is believed Cowell will be mostly absent from the first round of auditions since he will be in the US launching the corresponding version of X Factor.
Still, he’ll be back on board for the live shows. The same goes for when X Factor returns on ITV next autumn – until 2013, at least.
“I am thrilled this deal has been concluded with ITV to enable our relationship to continue to develop,” Simon told the British media after the deal was publicly announced.
“I am committed to making sure both shows get bigger and better every year. I have a lot to thank ITV for. They have been key in making The X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent the UK’s biggest television shows,” the music mogul added.
“The X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent are the shows that have helped define the last decade of television in the UK and have become more than just a talking point: they are a national obsession,” Peter Fincham, ITV’s director of television, also said.
Indeed, while ratings for X Factor are not yet as impressive as they were on last season’s finale, they’re still pretty remarkable: this Sunday’s show was watched live by over 15 million people.