BlackBerry is attempting to strengthen its enterprise software credentials with the purchase of Canadian company Good Technology for $425m (£278m).

BlackBerry has increasingly focused on software in the past few years as its smartphone sales have tanked, hoping to turn its former popularity among business users into a channel into the enterprise software market.

The deal with Good Technology should be completed by the middle of next year, and will see BlackBerry acquire a range of new technologies that offer a secure a safe mobile platform for business users.

“By acquiring Good, BlackBerry will better solve one of the biggest struggles for CIOs today, especially those in regulated industries: securely managing devices across any platform,” said John Chen, CEO and executive chairman of BlackBerry. “By providing even stronger cross-platform capabilities our customers will not have to compromise on their choice of operating systems, deployment models or any level of privacy and security.”

Goods technology will integrate with BlackBerrys existing enterprise offerings to create a comprehensive device management solution that provides customers with a holistic experience across multiple applications.

Bringing Goods operations into the fold will expand BlackBerrys presence in the global enterprise market by over 6,200 organisations, including over half of the Fortune 100, and every Fortune 100 commercial bank, aerospace and defence firm.

“Enterprise customers today demand stringent security and the most flexible platform across all mobility strategies,” said Christy Wyatt, CEO and chairman of Good Technology. “We are excited to join BlackBerry, where together we will be the most comprehensive mobile platform in the market.”