Blackberry firm sees profits fall

The success of the Blackberry has driven RIM's profits

The maker of Blackberry mobile phones, Research in Motion (RIM), has seen shares fall 9% after it reported a drop in second-quarter profits.

Canada-based RIM earned $475.6m (£296.5m) between June and August, from $495.5m a year earlier.

After enjoying success in the corporate market, RIM has been targeting the consumer market, where the BlackBerry is competing with Apple's iPhone.

About 80% of new customers were now private users, the firm said.

The figures did not include a settlement payment due to mobile e-mail provider Visto, which claimed RIM was using its technology without a license.

Sales rose 37% in the period to $3.53bn from $2.58bn a year earlier.

However it said that revenue for the current three months would be between $3.6bn and $3.85bn - short of the $3.95 billion analysts were expecting.

Last month Fortune magazine listed RIM as the world's fastest-growing company

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