Apple and Google Will Fight Over This Start-Up

Every one of the major tech companies has taken steps to upgrade messaging. Microsoft has combined MSN Messenger with Skype, for example. Apple has iMessage. Google has upgraded its efforts in a new platform called Hangouts. Start-up MessageMe may best them all anyway.

MessageMe has grown astoundingly in the two months since launch. According to TechCrunch, the service now has 5 million iOS and Android users while usage has tripled. And not just text messages -- MessageMe sets itself apart by allowing users to swap video, voice, and text messages as well as music, location data, and doodles, says Tim Beyers of Motley Fool Rule Breakers and Motley Fool Supernova in the following video.

Users appear to appreciate the variety, and that's a problem for the incumbents. Google took years to upgrade its messaging system. Apple's Messages isn't much better. Don't be surprised if these two start a bidding war for the platform, especially if MessageMe offers a premium app that supports money transfers, Tim says.

Do you agree? Please watch the video to get Tim's full take, and then let us know which messaging apps you're using now, and why.

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The article Apple and Google Will Fight Over This Start-Up originally appeared on Fool.com.

Fool contributor Tim Beyers is a member of the Motley Fool Rule Breakers stock-picking team and the Motley Fool Supernova Odyssey I mission. He owned shares of Apple and Google at the time of publication. Check out Tim's web home and portfolio holdings or connect with him on Google+, Tumblr, or Twitter, where he goes by @milehighfool. You can also get his insights delivered directly to your RSS reader.The Motley Fool recommends Apple, Facebook, and Google. The Motley Fool owns shares of Apple, Facebook, Google, and Microsoft. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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