Yesterday, many Facebook users began seeing an update notifying them that application profile tabs would soon disappear. While Facebook previously announced this change to developers, many users were surprised.

Just yesterday we received multiple emails from users who were still surprised by the change. Facebook is now displaying the message pictured below, which tells users that they can access all their applications from the homepage.

So what does this mean for the future of the Facebook profile? Given Facebook’s continuous design iterations, I’d have to wonder if Facebook is preparing to launch an “upgraded” profile which is more integrated into the Facebook homepage as groups, questions, and other applications have become. While I don’t think anything is imminent, I wouldn’t be surprised to see a modified profile released at some point in the next month or two.

For the time being, application developers will have to survive without deep integration into the profile (aside from feed stories) and users will have to live without applications as an primary extension of their digital identity on Facebook. Are you disappointed that Facebook is removing profile tabs or had you stopped using them long ago?