SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Thanks to the smartphone, Research In Motion Ltd. (RIM) and Apple Inc. in the first quarter rose to the fifth and sixth positions in the global cell-phone market, according to iSuppli Corp.

At the same time, Motorola Inc. fell to eighth place, according to iSuppli. (See rankings table on page 2)

The top four players in the first quarter retained their rankings compared to the fourth quarter. Nokia was in first place, followed in order by Samsung, LG Electronics and Sony Ericsson.

RIM saw its shipments jump by 364,000 units or 3.6 percent compared to the fourth quarter of 2009. This caused the company’s rank to rise to No. 5 in the global cell phone market, up from eighth place in the fourth quarter of 2009, according to the firm.

Apple in the first quarter shipped 8.8 million mobile handsets, every one an iPhone, giving it a 3.04 percent share of global shipments. Company shipments rose by 0.2 percent from 8.7 million in the fourth quarter of 2009, giving it the No. 6 position in the market in the first quarter, up from ninth place in the fourth quarter of 2009, according to the firm.

As recently as the first quarter of 2007, Motorola was the world’s second largest cell phone shipper after Nokia. In contrast, Motorola in the first quarter posted a 29.2 percent decline in shipments to 8.5 million units, down from 12 million in the fourth quarter of 2009. This caused the company’s rank to slide two positions to eighth place, falling behind both Apple and Chinese handset OEM ZTE Co. Ltd.

“Smart phones represent the hottest segment of the cell phone market, with unit shipment growth of 35.5 percent expected in 2010, compared to 11.3 percent for the overall mobile handset business,” Tina Teng, senior analyst, wireless communications for iSuppli, said in a statement.

“Because of this, companies that are exclusively focused on this area, like RIM and Apple, have managed to move up to near the top-tier of the global cell phone business. This shows that the smart phone is reshaping the competitive landscape of the wireless business,'' she said.

Following normal seasonal patterns, worldwide cell phone shipments declined in the first quarter compared to the fourth quarter of 2009. Shipments declined to 288.1 million units, down 13.9 percent from 334.6 million in the fourth quarter. However, first-quarter shipments soared by 13.8 percent compared to the same period in 2009, providing a very optimistic indicator of market growth this year.