Research in Motion Ltd, maker of the Blackberry line of smartphones, had more than double the market share of its nearest competitor, Apple Inc's iPhone, according to new research.

Research in Motion had 44.5 percent of the market during the first three months of 2008, up from 35.1 percent in the last quarter of 2008, according to research firm IDC.

Apple Inc's iPhone had 19.2 percent of the market in the first quarter, down from 26.7 percent in the fourth quarter.

Rounding out the top six, Palm Inc had 13.4 percent, down from 7.9 percent; Samsung Electronics Co Ltd had 8.6 percent, up from 5.1 percent; High Tech Computer Corp had 4.1 percent, a decline from 7.9 percent; and Motorola Inc was at 2.6 percent, from 7.5 percent.

IDC did not reveal the total number of phones sold in either quarter.

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