BlackBerry tried to reassure its restive customers that it was "here to stay," even though it announced layoffs and might try to flog itself off. In an open letter published in 30 news outlets across nine countries, the Waterloo, Ontario-based company stressed that its customers can continue to count on BlackBerry.

Last month the company announced it would slash its global workforce by more than a third. Frank Boulben, the company's chief marketing officer, said there was a lot of FUD out there in the marketplace. He wanted customers to know that they can continue to count on Blackberry and it was here stay.

“We have substantial cash on our balance sheet and we have no debt. We are restructuring our cost base and this is a very painful transition, but it will make us financially stronger and we want to get that message directly to our customers,” he said.

The open letter is being distributed via social media channels and being published in Tuesday's edition of newspapers across the globe, including the Washington Post and Wall Street Journal in the United States, and the Globe and Mail and National Post in Canada.