I hope not, it was useful but very, very OP. I stopped trying to pick locks and auto picked once I got the skeleton key. It would be cool though if it had a set of uses like it did in MW.

So you can open the door faster the next time you need it open. Speaking is real-time so maybe lockpicking is too. You don't want to be get caught do you?

Can see some point in it for breaking into houses regularly and such, but if the inventory manages keys anything resembeling the way it was handled in Oblivion i see this as the most annoying perk ever created in any game ever.
I mean, how many locks did you open to chests you were never going to loot again? A bazillion? Imagin having a key you were never going to use again for each of those, yeah, i'll pass, thanks....

As already mentioned, it's most likely the ability to lock and unlock any lock that has been picked by the player. Could be a durability thing, or just an infinite use item. Code-wise, this is pretty simple.

Lockpick variable = 0 (lock not picked): cannot use keys.
Lockpick variable = 1 (lock picked): can use key.

Conditions could include "can only use key of lock's level or below" etc.

It's only for locks that have keys, not all locks. There was a variable in Oblivion for "has key" assigned to relevant objects. I'm sure Skyrim has the same variable and it will only grant for those that have the variable be true.

I hope it's like that, then it would be quite useful.

Didn't a few places in Oblivion work like this too? Like some peoples house keys also worked for the door to their basemant or some storage? Haven't played it in ages.

*Ding* Give the man a cigar!

I think Beth took an idea from the 'keyring mod' in Oblivion for Skyrim, I don't think keys will be littering your inventory slots at all this time.

Correct. Hence the usefulness of the wax keys. NPCs can and will do this.

In Oblivion, you didn't get a bounty for using a key to open a locked door, even if you would have done had you picked the lock. At least I know this worked for the house in the Imperial City you had to go to in order to get the Mages staff for the Bravil recommendation. Once you stole that key from upstairs, you could walk right through that door to the basemant without getting a bounty, no sneaking required.

Lets say you want to rob a store. Lets say you've robbed it before, and made a key to the door. If a guard sees you picking the lock (because I think lockpicking happens in real time now) he will arrest you, but If your seen casually opening the door he wont be suspicious.