WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger will be facing some heat as a new instant messaging service has been announced by Snapchat, the Telegraph reported.
By "putting the chat into Snapchat," users will now be able to swipe on a friend's name in their Snapchat inbox in order to start an instant text conversation.
The opportunity to share live video and chat face-to-face will also be available if both users are engaged in a chat.
However, the catch of the application is that messages will self-destruct automatically once the user leaves the chat screen. Screenshots of messages can be taken to save anything important.
"Until today, we felt that Snapchat was missing an important part of conversation: presence. There's nothing like knowing you have the full attention of your friend while you're chatting," said Snapchat in a blog post.
"We let you know when a friend is Here in your Chat so that you can give each other your full attention. And if you're both Here, simply press and hold to share live video - and Chat face-to-face."
The new features will come in an update to the existing app, which has not yet arrived in the app store, according to the Telegraph.
Teenagers have been reported to be spending more time on mobile messaging apps like Snapchat and WhatsApp instead of "traditional" social networking sites Facebook and Twitter.
The news comes after Facebook updated its Messenger app earlier this week to include video messaging. Users can now tap a camera icon in their chat window to open up a "selfie" window just below their conversation.
"Snapchat is the fastest growing social media app among teens, with this demographic more than twice as likely as others to be using it. Snapchat usage increased 60 per cent between Q3 and Q4 2013, according to the report," the Telegraph reported.
