Pakistan’s fifth-place wireless provider, Warid Telecom, plans to start 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) services in five cities, Telegeography.com reports, quoting News International, and explaining that Warid, which has opted not to take part in the 3G and 4G auction, will apply to the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) for permission to provide LTE in Islamabad, Lahore, Faisalabad, Multan and Karachi using its existing 1,800-MHz spectrum holdings.

It has reportedly begun talks with vendors on deployment of infrastructure and providing LTE handsets, and says that, since the price of LTE-enabled handsets starts at $500 on average globally, it is negotiating with two large Android phone manufacturers to provide the same. In commenting on the announcement, a PTA official confirmed that they will consider Warid’s request if it does apply, and that, “Starting LTE services is a difficult proposition as LTE [hand]sets are very expensive and 3G handsets are more common in Pakistan and the rest of the world.”