<p>When it comes to online communication, the big thing these days is mobile messaging.</p><p>For proof, you need look no further than Facebook's $19 billion purchase last month of popularmessaging-application-maker WhatsApp. But WhatsApp is only one of a handful of mobile-messagingservices that have been gaining attention lately for providing consumers a new way tocommunicate.</p><p>"They're the cool thing of the moment," said Danielle Levitas, a mobile-technology analyst withIDC.</p><p>The new services, which include WeChat, Line, Viber and Telegram, were built from the ground upas mobile apps. They were designed to allow users to swap messages across their mobile phones whileavoiding pricey texting fees.</p><p><a href="http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/business/2014/03/10/mobile-messaging-enjoys-a-boom.html">Keep reading...</a></p><p>Read also:</p><p><a href="http://www.cnbc.com/id/101474726">Just how big will the messaging app industry get?</a> (CNBC.com)</p><p><a href="http://culturemob.com/whatsapp-free-download-messaging-apps?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=whatsapp-free-download-messaging-apps">WhatsApp Why is it Different from All Other Free Download Messaging Apps?</a> (CultureMob (blog))</p><p><a href="http://memeburn.com/2014/03/get-ott-a-here-what-facebooks-whatsapp-buyout-tells-us-about-the-state-of-mobile-messaging/">Get OTT &#039;a here! Facebook&#039;s WhatsApp buyout and the state of mobile messaging</a> (Memeburn)</p><p>Explore: <a href="http://news.google.com/news/more?ncl=d5PfTHNK9xHIhpMZ26cqT19ifFPyM&authuser=0&ned=us">21 additional articles.</a></p>