Sure, the social web is important. Facebook in particular is the hub for many social interactions that take place online, and Microsoft’s latest Outlook integration recognizes that fact. Microsoft has released an Outlook feature that will sync your Facebook contacts to keep their relevant profile information up to date. There have been tools for similar features in the past, but the direct support from Microsoft shows the company’s acknowledgment of the permanence of Facebook’s social web influence.

The new feature integrates with Microsoft Outlook and Windows Live, looking to be a part of Microsoft’s Social Connector initiative, released with the latest Office 2010. Only those Facebook contacts with Outlook email addresses are synced, to avoid any privacy concerns such as those Google faced with its Buzz integration. Your Facebook contacts’ profile pictures are also synced. From Microsoft,

“According to the Nielsen ratings, 67 percent of the global online population now goes online to visit social networks and blogs to stay connected, make decisions, and get things done. Today’s news demonstrates our commitment to evolving Office to support the way you get things done. The Outlook Social Connector doesn’t add another social network into the mix; rather it offers busy people the convenience of accessing them in Outlook.”

With Microsoft already having launched a similar tool for LinkedIn, it’s clear that Microsoft is looking to keep a minimal position in third-party social relationships. Validating sites like these is a big nod for social networks in general, even as they aren’t always focused on business interactions.

The integration tools for Facebook in particular can be likened to the mobile trend we’re seeing, for Facebook profile info to be used in your device’s address book. We can see how Facebook is affecting relationships and regular correspondence across multiple platforms and devices, further centralizing itself in individuals’ lives for managing those relationships.

Though today’s release seems relatively minor, it’s just another way in which industry veterans are finding more practical ways to accept and leverage social networking. So much of a social network is self-regulated–creating the right tools around that existing behavior is just a smart thing to do. Next up, we’re likely to see more configurable capabilities for two-way interaction between tools like Outlook and Facebook, so syncs are less static. Even better; social search and auto-management tools connecting the two.