The X Factor, also known as The X Factor USA, is an American reality television music competition show created by Simon Cowell and produced by FremantleMedia North America and SYCOtv, a partnership between Cowell and Sony Music Entertainment, which aired on Fox.

[2] Based on the original British show, and an addition to The X Factor franchise, the series found new singing talent (solo artists and groups ages 12 and over), drawn from public auditions, and they competed against each other for votes.

[5] The original judging panel consisted of Cowell, Paula Abdul, Cheryl Cole, and L.A. Reid, with Nicole Scherzinger and Steve Jones as co-hosts.

Reid and Spears did not return for the third season and were replaced by Kelly Rowland and Paulina Rubio, while Lopez became sole host after Kardashian was not asked to come back.

[2] In November 2010, Fox began airing short commercials for the program, which displayed the text "Coming to America Fall 2011".

[7][8] The New York Times described the commercials as efforts by the network to set up the launch of The X Factor as a television "event.

"[7] In February 2011, during Super Bowl XLV, Fox unveiled the official logo for the show in a promo starring Cowell.

[9] A second promo was shown during the course of that evening, featuring Katy Perry, Justin Bieber, Black Eyed Peas, Usher, Lady Gaga, The Pussycat Dolls, and Madonna.

[10] The show is primarily concerned with identifying singing talent, though appearance, personality, stage presence and dance routines are also an important element of many performances.

After waiting at the venue for hours (during which crews film more shots of crowds screaming and waving), each candidate is given a brief audition by someone from the production team.

(The televised version misleadingly gives the impression that everyone in the huge crowds shown is waiting for a chance to perform for the judges.)

[14] The finals consist of a series of two live shows, the first featuring the contestants' performances and the second revealing the results of the public voting, culminating in one or more acts being eliminated.

In addition to watching the program live on television, the audience was now able to participate on multiple platforms in real-time.

However, a twist occurred in season two where the rankings of the acts based on the public vote for the week were revealed after the eliminations on the show.

[11][12] A press release on behalf of the show on February 7, 2011 called the recording contract "the largest guaranteed prize in television history.

"[17] Unlike the British version of the show,[18] the costs of recording and marketing the winning artist will be paid for separately from the $5  million initial contract payment.

At the time of announcing the American version of The X Factor, Simon Cowell was the only confirmed judge for the show.

[20] Eventually, Grammy Award-winning record executive, songwriter, and record producer L.A. Reid,[21][22] former The X Factor UK judge Cheryl Cole,[23][24] and Cowell's former American Idol colleague Paula Abdul[25] were confirmed to join Cowell in the judging panel.

After season one, the show's producers had said that they would undergo some changes which resulted in, what media outlets called, an "X Factor Shake-up".

On December 13, 2012, Reid announced that he would not be returning as a judge for a third season, instead opting to focus on Epic Records.

Spears announced on January 11, 2013, that she would not be renewing her contract for another season, opting to focus on recording her eighth studio album.

In April 2013, it was reported that former judge on The X Factor UK Kelly Rowland was the front-runner to replace Reid.

On April 22, 2013, Fox announced that Lopez would return as sole host for season three after Kardashian was not asked back as co-host.

This program features behind-the-scenes looks backstage, acoustic performances, and interviews with celebrities, judges, contestants, and X Factor alumni.

In the quarter-final of season one, Scherzinger voted to eliminate contestant Rachel Crow from the show over Marcus Canty; this sent the result to deadlock.

The airing of the season two judges' houses episode on October 17, 2012, was cut short abruptly in the middle of Lovato's selection for the top 16 to return to MLB on Fox coverage of Game 3 of the 2012 National League Championship Series, which had been in a lengthy rain delay and restarted (the game started at 4 p.m.

[44] After viewer complaints and a Twitter message from Cowell that consisted of his reaction being "It's what's known as a total f up," the episode was re-aired the next week in full.

On January 7, 2011, Fox, SYCOtv and FremantleMedia North America announced that Pepsi would be the official sponsor of The X Factor.

[59] In December 2022, The U.S. Sun reported that, while an official deal has yet to be reached, Cowell was in talks with NBC, which had offered to revive the American version of The X Factor.