I’m not so sure that users will use the TDE on Express edition. Most of the time Express edition is not managed by a DBA. In fact in most of the time the Express edition is being installed by another software and many times the DBA is not even aware of those editions that are installed in his organization. The users that use those applications are not database professionals and wouldn’t know what TDE is and how to use it (in fact many times they also are not aware that SQL Server Express edition is used by their software). In short I think that if TDE will be supported on Express edition, it will hardly be used.

Adi