[Locke.]

See the bold writing:

Saturday was a huge payday for Simon Cowell and a very good night indeed for ITV, which will have made well over £3million from the 8million phone votes cast.

But the winner, Alexandra Burke, will be taking home hardly enough to pay for the blinging cocktail ring worn by her idol Beyoncé on the show.

As we revealed last week, under the terms of a contract signed by all the 12 final contestants, the winner gets an advance of only £150,000 and is promised a modest percentage of earnings from future record sales and tours.

The £1million figure actually refers to the amount Syco, Simon Cowell’s record company, and parent company Sony BMG will spend on the artist including writers and producers, marketing and advertising.

Supporters say Alexandra could become a global phenomenon like 2006 winner Leona Lewis, who has already made £6million with Bleeding Love, the best-selling single of the 21st century, and a seven-times platinum album. But if, like previous winners Steve Brookstein, Shayne Ward and Leon Jackson, she just has a Christmas No 1 and one hit album then fades away, she will be lucky to earn £250,000.

This contract, in place for the past five years, states that none of the last 12 is allowed to sign a recording deal with anyone other than Syco for the next three months. Some are said to be unhappy about the deal.

But criticising Simon Cowell is explicitly not allowed. Last week a smiling Cowell said: ‘The clause stating that you can’t talk about me is the most useless one in the world because everybody talks badly about me.’ He can afford to joke because he, naturally, is the real winner. He is on a three-year £20million deal with ITV as well as the money he makes via Syco. He is said to have earned £40million in 2007 alone.

The other winner is Sony BMG, which has notched up nine platinum-selling albums
since the show began. (And owns the publishing rights to the winner’s first single,
Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah.)

Yesterday Syco announced it would sign Saturday’s three finalists, plus fourth-placed Diana Vickers. Last year winner Leon Jackson, Rhydian Roberts and Same Difference were signed up, and in 2006 only Leona Lewis and Ray Quinn made the grade. The winner receives a £150,000 advance and the runners-up £75,000, £50,000
and £10,000 respectively.

A Syco spokesman voiced limited sympathy for the also-rans, saying: ‘I think what people sometimes forget is that being on the show is an enormous break. If it was not for The X Factor, Leona could still be working as a receptionist.’

Music producer Pete Waterman says: ‘My feeling is that Simon is going soft in his old
age – he’s throwing his money around.

‘I think that a £150k advance is the best deal I have ever heard of. I would not give that to any of my artists.’

Jonathan Shalit, the impresario who launched Charlotte Church, said that complaints over a lack of creative freedom were misplaced. ‘Look, this is a karaoke show. Everyone knows the rules by now.'

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz...on-Cowell.html

[30stone]

Thats quality its good to konw they have all been signed...

happiest most for diana.


should be good this time next year.

[MrGaryy]

Wooo! So glad to know that I will defo be able to buy Diana's album.

[30stone]

I agree gazbo im guessing you mean diana?

will be a while but probably the only album i wil buy next year.

[MrGaryy]

Originally posted by 30stone
I agree gazbo Im guessing you mean diana?

will be a while but probably the only album i wil buy next year.

Yeah lol, edited. I was getting worried she wasn't gonna get a deal.

[Locke.]

I'll definitely be buying anything JLS release, and if Diana and Alex are given good material then I'll probably buy their albums.

[Z]

Nice to hear. I thought Simon would have signed Ruth up too, but maybe not.

[BigSister]

Ill prob just buy Dianas and JLS ^_^

[rayheartbliss]

at least 4 got signed

[XxShortyxX]

Yay Diana get's signed! I can't wait to hear what her Album will be like, Iwould defo buy Diana's and Alex's stuff.

[Spike]

Great news
I'm not surprised, I think they are the 4 acts from the series who are guaranteed to have some success. I am so buying all their albums

[Indierock&roll]

YEY!!!
cant wait for dianas album! and yeeeeeeah for eoghan thats so good
i knew jls would anyway

[robb]

But not ruth or laura...............well maybe that's not such a bad thing. Like Farryl Smith, if they sign for other companies it may give them more flexibility away from the Syco controllers..................

[XxShortyxX]

Laura has been signed elsewhere, and I think Ruth has as well.

[Tom4784]

I'm Glad for Diana, I'll definately be interested to hear her music.

[Sod_James]

awwww good luck to them all.

actually cept JLS i hate them.

[Matt08]

Originally posted by XxShortyxX
Laura has been signed elsewhere, and I think Ruth has as well.

They can't have been yet because of clauses in their contract.

[MarkWaldorf]

Diana should have signed somewhere else. This way we'll never hear her Hallelujah, Syco won't let her release it if the winner has.

[Sod_James]

Eoghan and Diana should get together twosome instead of solo artists.

[Tom8592]

Originally posted by Sod_James
Eoghan and Diana should get together twosome instead of solo artists.

No

[M X]

Yay, Diana!

[Locke.]

Originally posted by Sod_James
Eoghan and Diana should get together twosome instead of solo artists.

That would be the worst possible thing for both of them.

[XxShortyxX]

Originally posted by Matt08

They can't have been yet because of clauses in their contract.

I read on DS that she has been signed, it was a few weeks back.

[Adamw92]

woooo Diana!!! can't wait for music to be released by her, i'll be buying it all

[TheMac]

I don't know why they are saying Leon has already fading out, but this news is good to hear.