Some of the most popular applications are free. Whether it is YouTube, Facebook or Google Maps, this model has made these companies billions of dollars. But a new study from McGuffin asks an interesting question. How much value do consumers assign to these apps, and how much would they be willing to pay for them?

This question also comes at a time when these companies are under scrutiny from regulators. And if things keep going in this direction, there is a chance they will be asking for a fee to use their services. In fact, Small Business Trends asked this very question back in 2012.

Read more at Small Biz Trends.