Blackberry has confirmed the rumors. They are leaving Japanese market for the time being.

The first generation of Blackberry 10 devices would not be launched here.

The company might return in the future if they see enough demand there.

Blackberry however clarified that they would continue to support all existing customers.

The company said:

We are in the process of launching BlackBerry 10 globally in key markets and we are seeing positive demand for the BlackBerry Z10 in countries where it has already launched. Japan is not a major market for BlackBerry and we have no plans to launch BlackBerry 10 devices there at this time. However, we will continue to support BlackBerry customers in Japan.

Japan is a big market for smartphones though it is largely dominated by Apple iPhone and local players like Sharp.