In the messaging world, the battle rages on. Pavel Durov, founder of Telegram, has just launched a media offensive on his own Telegram channel, claiming that his app is way ahead of WhatsApp in many aspects.

To back up his point, he cites several examples of features that originated with Telegram and were taken up much later by WhatsApp. But Durov recognizes a weak point: Telegram doesn't communicate enough about its strengths.

To rectify this, it is launching a creative advertising contest, with $50,000 in prize money, aimed at producing hard-hitting videos touting the benefits of Telegram.

Beyond the functional competition, this initiative shows that the issue is also and above all a question of image and user perception.

Messaging has become a market where the difference lies as much in innovation as in the ability to tell the story.