A new study from market research firm comScore on Tuesday showed that Apple has now passed RIM in market share as a handset maker and a platform.

[ad#Google Adsense 300×250 in story]According to the data, Apple rose 1.2 percent by the end of May to 8.7 percent market share, surpassing RIM’s 8.1 percent share. RIM fell 0.5 percent over the three month period.

Samsung was the top handset maker with 24.8 percent share, followed by LG (21.1 percent) and Motorola (15.1 percent).

ComScore placed Google at the top of the smartphone platforms with a 38.1 percent share of the market. Apple came in second with 26.6 percent and RIM third with 24.7 percent. RIM fell 4.2 percent during the last three months.

There are now only two companies following RIM — Microsoft (5.8 percent) and Palm (2.4 percent).