Market research firm comScore reports that Apple's iPhone and BlackBerry Curve have surpassed traditional mobile phones as the industry's most popular mobile gaming platforms.

According to comScore's research, gaming downloads on smartphone devices increased by nearly 300 percent between 2007 and 2008. The study was conducted over a three-month period ending in November of each year. During the same period, game downloads on traditional mobile phones dropped by 15 percent.

The iPhone played a significant role in these results — iPhone users accounted for 14 percent of all mobile game downloads in November. comScore reports that iPhone owners are also much more likely to download games than other mobile users. 32.4 percent of iPhone users reported downloading a game in November of 2008, compared to the cross-platform market average of 3.8 percent.

Industry analyst Mark Donovan finds that the rise of the iPhone and other smartphone devices has resulted in newfound consumer interest in mobile games. "As the mobile phone has evolved into a better platform for both playing and merchandising games, the games being offered have also been improved, drawing in a broader user base," Donovan said.

Donovan continues: "Over the past year, we have seen mobile gaming expand into a broadening demographic, with strongest growth among teens, who previously eschewed their mobile device in favor of handheld gaming devices, and those 35 and older."