'X Factor' votes drop by 50 per cent

Viewer votes for The X Factor have dropped by 50 per cent in the aftermath of this year's phone-in controversies.

A recent investigation into ITV's use of premium rate phone lines found that some viewer votes had been ignored in the talent show's 2005 final. "Serious editorial issues" were also found in Soapstar Superstar, Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway and Ant and Dec's Gameshow Marathon.

An ITV source told the Daily Mail: "We've been told that voting for The X Factor has been down around 50 per cent on last year."

The drop in viewer votes is believed to have cost the show around £10 million in revenue. A loss of trust, as well as the axing of SMS and interactive "red button" voting, has been blamed for the slump.