AllThingsD is reporting that social networking giant Facebook and internet communications company Skype are planning to announce a “wide-ranging partnership that will include integration of SMS, voice chat and Facebook Connect.” The blog cites “sources close to the situation” and goes on to explain that the partnership will allow users to SMS and call Facebook friends (both video and audio) from Skype. The report states that this functionality will appear in Skype 5.0; which is due out of beta in the several weeks. Both Skype and Facebook have over 500 million registered users respectively making this a blockbuster partnership.

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During their annual developers conference yesterday Facebook revealed that their newly minted Facebook Connect protocol would be made available to iPhone application developers sometime this Fall. What this means is that iPhone apps will have access to Facebook Connect, allowing them  to utilize your Facebook account, profile, and user information. While it might disturb the more paranoid among us, it’s ultimately a good look for developers and users alike, as it allows both parties to access a wealth of information without having to re-enter and re-establish your identity across multiple applications. The real winner here, of course, is Facebook, as they move towards becoming a centralized repository of your online identity.

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