American Idol judge, Simon Cowell, has announced at the Television Critic’s Association winter press tour that he is leaving the show to pursue a new talent search show called The X-Factor.

“The X Factor will launch in 2011,” Cowell told reporters Monday. “Because of that, this will be my last season on American Idol.”

Cowell will serve as executive producer and judge on the American version of The X-Factor, which he has already launched in the U.K.

“I’m thrilled that we have put a date on the launch of the U.S. version of The X Factor, and delighted to be continuing to work with FOX,” Cowell said in a statement.

“We have a fantastic relationship, a great team and are all very excited about this.”

Last August, American Idol judge Paula Abdul announced over the social networking site, Twitter, that she was leaving the show. She has already been replaced by talk show host Ellen Degeneres. When asked if Paula could be a judge on The X-Factor, Simon Cowell went on to say, “I adore Paula. Whatever happens, I will be working with her in some capacity. Because I miss her.”

There’s no work yet on who will be replacing Simon Cowell as judge of America’s most popular talent search show, but rest assured that with one more season left, you can expect him to be in fine form, pulling no punches, when it comes to judging the contestants.

Season nine of American Idol premieres Tuesday (8:00 p.m. EST) on FOX.