Simon Cowell's departure signals the end of 'Idol' as we know it

It's official: Season 9 will be Simon Cowell's final season of American Idol. But you already knew that.

The question is, what does this mean for the show's future? Well, for starters, ratings are not going to increase as a result of the move, and in fact, they will most likely drop (by quite a large margin most likely). Simon makes the show, even though he often causes most of the "problems" concerning allegations of manipulation and the like, so by him leaving there will be an unfulfillable void.

Now, if rumbles of America's Got Talent judge Piers Morgan replacing Simon ring true, he would probably be an okay choice but will always be seen as a second-rate Simon. Besides this obvious drain on Idol, there's also that threat of Simon's new venture, at least new on this side of the pond, as he will bring his hit series X Factor to FOX beginning in Fall 2011. If Simon is smart and nabs Paula Abdul to help him out as a judge on that show, it will likely recreate the kind of luster that Idol as seemed to have lost over the past few seasons. Even though the show itself would not be a threat to Idol physically, it is certainly one theoretically.

Simon is smart enough to pull off this kind of scheme, and according to this piece by Richard Rushfield over at TheDailyBeast.com that's been circulating around the net this afternoon, Simon is just the man to put this plan into motion. One of the more interesting comments in the article came not from Simon, but from former producer Nigel Lythgoe, who said:

“There's been so much talk on Idol about the judges, the judges; it's not about the judges. It's about the talent."

Now Nigel knows just as well as anyone that this was once true, but sadly, it isn't anymore. As evidenced by the handling of the past season's finalists, the show and its staff are not into the actual contestants as much as they are their bottom dollar. But that's the least of the show's problems.

Regardless of how Simon's career turns out come the end of May, it's easy to see that Idol is on a downward spiral that will need a miracle to get out of.