google sketch 3d: new business model?

Recently, i came across Google sketch 3d. it's a tool in which you can create a model of any building and put it on Google map. thus Google is providing a product which in turn will enhance the quality of their own service.this is very different kind of business model. usually there is a bifurcation between provider and consumer. but in this particular business model, there is very thin or no line drawn between the two parties. it can be argued that the customers give their money to provider on which the whole business runs. but that does not affect the quality of the service or goods provide by the provider so directly as in this case. It is really interesting to see the developement of such a business model.
this kind of business model is not a new one. companies like Unilever have tapped into the public talent pool before at nominal cost. but in that case there was no disguise. I mean, they were asking ideas from people and good ideas were given credit. however in case of Google, the beauty lies in this disguise. they are getting resources in the disguise of user. can this model be implemented everywhere?
in case of non-IT industries, this model seems very much unpractical perhaps due to the fact that it has never been explored before. the essence is to provide such a service to customers which will increase quality of your own services. in case of IT industries, or particularly web-sites, this is easier as the concept of people generated content is not so novel. however, in case of other industries, the concept of people generated content is not explored enough. perhaps the co-operative sector might come up with something like this.