That stupid 1 megapixel camera that qualifies your cell as a "smartphone" is ruining the paparazzi industry! Industry heavies like INF, Bauer-Griffin, X17, and Splash are all feeling the effects of the influx of inventory, now that anyone with a camera-ish device can snap a shot of a celeb and bring it to market.

Photos that used to score several hundred dollars are now barely good enough for a round of lattes. The Wall Street Journal is calling it the phenomenon of "Citizen Paparazzi," which is sort of what CNN refers to as "i-Reporters" and what we refer to as "please write down our email address."

The everyday photogs get a cut of the sale price, ranging from 40 to 60 percent. And of course, some snaps are worth a helluva lot more than others: Paris on the town? Scraps. Nick Lachey and Vanessa Minnillo humping in a hot tub? Your fortune looks better.

Which means the top agencies now have whole hoards of trigger-happy photogs at their disposal, but the price they're snagging for each photo is on the wane. (Then again, with independent blogs and the websites of tabloid magazines and TV shows, there are more and more places to sell their photos.) But don't worry to long about the financial prospects of paparazzi agencies: They've signed enough "exclusive arrangements" with starlets that they'll be the only ones showing up to "candidly" shoot them walking their dog, eating, or getting a round of lattes.

[Photo]