Does Beyoncé Really Stand to Earn Millions by Having a Baby?

Singer's baby isn't even dropping this year, but the little he, or she, is already a six-figure earner

How much of a cash cow will Beyoncé's baby be for her? Will this birth make her even richer?
—J. Packer, via the inbox

Richer than who, exactly—the royal family? Beyoncé already has an estimated net worth of somewhere in the nine figures: We're talking $115 million to $300 million, depending on which brand of capitalism porn you read. So whatever she makes off of her baby, assuming she considers even doing so, will be pocket change.

Just what is pocket change for Beyoncé? Well ...

Remember, there's nothing a baby-oriented business loves more than a famous mommy. Ever since Beyoncé made her announcement at the VMAs, you can safely bet that thousands of dollars worth of stuff has been arriving at Chez Z: baby clothes, baby bags, baby furniture, bottles, other gear. The goal: a paparazzi photo of Beyoncé using the stuff in public. It's free advertising, the very best kind. By the time the kid is born, don't be surprised if the dollar value of the freebies reaches the tens or even hundreds of thousands.

That said, the biggest payday will, of course, come from the first baby photo, assuming that Beyoncé chooses to sell that photo at all. (Sarah Jessica Parker, for example, chose not to sell a photo of her first born and instead let paparazzi snap away during the baby's first public appearance.)

"Beyoncé has got a million-dollar baby on her hands," estimates Mark Pasetsky, former editor of OK! magazine, and now the founder of the publicity firm Mark Allen & Co. "It will be at least a million. She's is a very well-loved star, this is her first baby and she's popular around the world."

Now if that figure sounds a little small, you're right: Jennifer Lopez charged a reported $6 million for access to her newborn twins. And People magazine is said to have paid Brangelina $14 million for a first look at their twins. Even the first photo of Shiloh Jolie-Pitt garnered a reported $4 million.

You can blame the economy, insiders tell me. Fewer magazines are publishing, particularly in the U.S., which means less competition, and lower bids, for baby photos.

Still, $1million will buy Beyoncé a hell of a lot of Pampers.