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The signals are hard to miss – six-figure cheques for charities, earnest introduction letters in local papers, a new name for the Winnipeg Jets’ home ice.

Telecom giants BCE Inc. and Telus Corp., are laying it on thick to woo customers and build their brands in Manitoba on the heels of Bell’s $3.9-billion purchase of Manitoba Telecom Services, a deal that catapulted both from bit players to leading roles in the province’s wireless market.

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Before the acquisition, regional carrier MTS dominated with about half the wireless market share, followed by Rogers Communications Inc. with about a third and Bell and Telus with about 10 per cent each. Regulators approved the deal in February on the condition the newly formed Bell MTS divest a chunk of subscribers to Telus and, eventually, a smaller subset to Xplornet Communications Inc.

Manitoba is home to more than 900,000 wireless subscribers, according to CRTC data, pulling in more than $650 million annually, based on average revenue per user. Both Bell and Telus updated their annual financial guidance to reflect the additional revenue.