BlackBerry (again) published an open letter, this time claiming “reports of our death are greatly exaggerated”, as it looks to reassure its core enterprise customer base of its longevity.

Significantly, the letter, attributed to John Chen, newly installed executive chair and CEO of the company, is targeted squarely at “enterprise customers and partners”, which – following its decision to largely abandon the consumer market – will be crucial to its success moving forward.

However, enterprise customers look for long-term stability with partners, and BlackBerry has already acknowledged that uncertainty over its future has impacted its performance.

“We’re going back to our heritage roots – delivering enterprise-grade, end-to-end mobile solutions. As we refocus back to our roots, BlackBerry will target four areas: handsets, EMM solutions, cross-platform messaging, and embedded systems”, Chen wrote.

“And, just as important, we will continue to invest in enterprise and security related R&D during our restructure period”, he continued.

Chen also said that the company’s recent deal with Fairfax Financial Services – which saw a potential buyout transformed into an investment – meant that “our ‘for sale’ sign has been taken down and we are here to stay”.

“The investments you’ve made in BlackBerry infrastructure and solutions are secure. I will keep the lines of communication open as we navigate through this transition,” Chen continued.

BlackBerry previously published an open letter ahead of the Fairfax deal, in which it argued that “you can continue to count on BlackBerry”.