Fox Cancels 'X Factor'; Simon Cowell Goes Home

The crowded roster of network singing competition shows got a little tighter this week, as Fox announced the cancellation of "The X Factor." That leaves "American Idol" as the only singing show left on Fox and show creator Simon Cowell with no reason to stay in the United States.

The announcement comes after three years of steadily declining ratings, during which the show failed to click with a wide audience or produce much in the way of commercially successful new talent. Ratings for all singing competition shows have been in decline in recent years, but "The X Factor" in particular failed to generate much excitement, especially compared to fellow relative newcomer "The Voice."

At the same time that Fox announced that it was killing the show, Cowell announced that he would be returning to his native England in order to sit on the judges' panel of "The X Factor UK."

The network's chicken-and-egg spin on the events suggested that it was Cowell's decision to leave that led to the end of the show, but it's clear that the series was in trouble after underperforming for so long, and even if it was Cowell's own decision to leave, his welcome on the American airwaves seems to have been worn out already.