According to a ChangeWave survey, the new 3G iPhone from Apple (News - Alert) (AAPL) is going to have a tsunami-like impact on the consumer smart phone market. The Canadian Blackberry manufacturer Research in Motion (RIMM) remains the clear market leader at present with 42 percent market share. Over the past 90 days, the Apple iPhone (News - Alert) has gained 11 percent of the market share. At this rate, the Apple iPhone is close to achieving the number two spot from PALM which has sunk to a new record low.

 

ChangeWave has a proprietary network of about 15,000 qualified professionals (business, technology and medical) in companies of select industries. These professionals are credential experts who work on the frontline of technological change. ChangeWave conducts surveys on its members on business and investment research and intelligence topics. The feedback collected is then converted into proprietary and qualitative reports.

 

According to Tobin Smith, founder of ChangeWave Research and editor of ChangeWave Investing, “These numbers are good news for Apple, but it’s when we asked respondents about their planned smart phone purchases over the next 90 days that this tsunami-like effect of the marketplace transformation becomes crystal clear.”

 

According to the survey, 56 percent of respondents who plan to purchase a smart phone in the next 90 days say they are getting an Apple iPhone. This shows a leap of 21-pt from the previous survey. RIM’s share of consumer planned purchases is expected to go down sharply by 6 pts in the next 90 days. Palm remains third in this race with just 3 percent of planned purchases. Commenting on this survey, Smith has stated that “The most likely explanation for such a large scale projected increase in smart phone buyers going forward is the anticipation and publicity surrounding the imminent release of the 3G iPhone.”

 

The report also found out that about 55 percent, i.e. better than one-in-two current iPhone owners, say they are “very likely” to buy the 3G iPhone for themselves or someone else in the future.

 

RIM has multiple plans in motion to counter Apple’s growing momentum among consumers. One such plan is the new product release (the Bold) which has already been announced along with two more likely additional product releases (Thunder and Kickstart).