BlackBerry has announced that it will not be selling its two new handset models in Japan, AFP and Phys Org report.

The new models, the Q10 and the Z10, will both feature a new operating system announced on January 30, an event which also saw the rebranding of Research In Motion as BlackBerry.

BlackBerry officials insist the move is not a snub to Japanese customers. However, Nikkei Business Daily reports that BlackBerry's market share in Japan has decreased from five percent to 0.3 percent, which most likely explains the decision to keep the Q10 and Z10 out of Japan. The phone is already available in Canada and Britain.

"Japan is not a major market for BlackBerry and we have no plans to launch BlackBerry 10 devices there at this time," spokeswoman Amy McDowell said.