Ratings: The X Factor fails to beat American Idol premiere, Modern Family wins the night

Simon Cowell failed. The X Factor did not beat American Idol's season premiere this year. It did not even beat The Voice premiere either. The X Factor opened with a 4.2 rating with 12 million viewers.

Modern Family season 3 premiered with a 6.0 rating and 14 million viewers.

Survivor had a 3.1 rating.

From TVbytheNumbers:

The X Factor's 4.2 adults 18-49 rating and 12.14 million viewers was nowhere close to Idol and well short of Modern Family's 6.0 adults 18-49 rating and 14.3 million viewers. A few have e-mailed to say the comparisons between X Factor and Idol are unfair, and while that is perhaps true, those comparisons were inevitable with Simon, Paula and a lot of promotion.

At 8pm, X Factor led, but Survivor held up with a 3.1 adults 18-49 rating and ABC's The Middle debuted to a 3.0 adults 18-49 rating.