10/17/2006 -- But not all enterprises are embracing them -- yet.

That's the take of new research from market watcher In-Stat, which says the actual usage of strong security mechanisms in enterprise WLAN deployments continues to lag -- in spite of the ratification and availability of key wireless standards.

The good news, In-Stat researchers say, is that this situation should soon change, mostly because enterprises are becoming increasingly dependent on wireless and increasingly hip to the importance of wireless security.

This will help drive explosive growth across the wireless security market entire, as well as in two specific market segments, which In-Stat broadly classifies as portable devices and network operations. All told, the market-watcher projects, these two segments could generate $4.4 billion in revenues by 2010.

"For WLANs to successfully move beyond limited installations in 'carpeted' conference rooms and lobbies, businesses must employ a variety of security mechanisms," said In-Stat analyst Victoria Fodale, in a prepared release. "Much of the security revenue for business clients will be generated by solutions that protect data when it is transmitted or stored on portable devices, including enterprise platforms that centrally manage and provision encryption applications."

It's about time: a recent In-Stat survey found that more than 70 percent of respondents used WLANs in their businesses. But between now and 2010, close to 460 million new client devices with wireless capabilities will be deployed across the enterprise -- including mobile PCs and Wi-Fi handsets.