I've got some audio from Jon Kabat-Zinn, and sometimes I use it when meditating, sometimes not.

However, people pay for stuff sometimes for the psychological effect. For example, we pay to have someone clean our house. But the day before they come to clean, we pre-clean. It keeps us accountable to not letting clutter take control.

I listen to the Kabat-Zinn audio, not so much for the instruction, but that it helps keep me "on the cushion" for a longer duration. Without it, I'm more likely to get distracted and stop early to do something else.

So sometimes that is the actual value, the accountability. It's an intangible value.