Simon Cowell To Give X-Factor Winner $5 Million

Simon Cowell has upped the ante for the winner of his American version of “X Factor”,giving away a $5 million “life-changing” prize!The former American Idol judge has vowed to give whomever wins the talent competition a staggering $5 million, which is four and far more than American Idol winners receive.Well,that just put the nail in AI's coffin!  

On Being Nervous About the Size Of The Prize:

I'm nervous, but I'm also confident that it was the right thing to do. I think it should be a life-changing prize. Just to be clear, this is not dressed-up $5 million; this is a guaranteed $5 million payable to the winner. The recording costs, the marketing costs, the video costs are completely separate to that. It will be paid over five years, $1 million a year for five years, and on top of the Sony label getting behind the artist, we will also be offering financial support for the winner so they don't have to invest their money, look after their money, because that's a lot of cash.