Analyst: Even against the iPhone, RIM still gains market share

As Apple ramped down shipments of its first-generation iPhone, it actually lost market share to BlackBerry manufacturer Research in Motion (RIM), according to the latest Gartner report.

RIM doubled its market share to 17.4 percent, selling 5.6 million devices in the April to June quarter, states the Gartner report. This was up from 2.5 million a year ago, and the marked increase likely has a lot to do with RIM's new push beyond business customers and into the consumer market.

This push continues -- in fact its latest round of ads give the device a considerably more consumer-oriented approach, portraying "Life on BlackBerry," where everyday people can keep their busy daily lives organized.

A year-to-year comparison was not available for the second quarter of 2007 because the iPhone had only sold for two days during that quarter.

Even with the significant jump, RIM is still no match for Nokia. Though its market share dropped over 3% amid increasing competition, the company still controls 47.5% of the market.

Analysts both within Gartner and outside the firm seem to agree that Nokia will likely continue to lose share as competition intensifies. Many say that the company must continue to innovate its devices or risk being left behind, especially as Apple continues to grow.

Apple itself saw its market share sliced in half to 2.8%, due in large part to its ramping down of shipments in preparation for the iPhone 3G. With the extraordinary success of the iPhone 3G launch worldwide, it's all but certain the company's share will skyrocket in the coming quarter.

HTC came in third spot with 1.3 million sales. That company also saw a surge in sales, likely due to the launch of the Touch Diamond.

In terms of operating systems, Symbian led with 57% of the market, followed by RIM with 17.4%, and Windows Mobile at 12%. Symbian's success is directly tied to Nokia's, which is one of the primary users -- it also is owned by the Finnish phone maker.