There is an unspoken rule in telkoms - "thou cannot jump the gun"

If you want WCDMA - you must first go through 2G [GSM, or normal CDMA] , though GPRS/Edge - then finally you get 3G.

Its the way vendors make money....

Which means - if 4G was available today, and a new operator like "Kain" came along and got a license this month - would they be granted 4G when the others are still fighting to implement 2.5G ?