Facebook app spurs spike in Snapchat popularity

Facebook Poke has been described by some as a direct rip-off of Snapchat, a mobile app that lets you send pictures and videos to people that self-destruct after a short time. And while you'd think having a behemoth like Facebook come barreling into your territory would be a disaster, for Snapchat it's been the opposite.

According to Topsy, a social media and web analytics firm, online mentions of Snapchat have soared since the release of Poke. Snapchat also is booming in the download department -- it's currently the fourth most popular iPhone app in iTunes, whereas Facebook Poke barely makes the top 100.

In Google Play, Snapchat is the 31st most popular free app. As for the Android version of Poke -- there isn't one, a factor that very well could boost Snapchat's popularity with mobile users.

Snapchat co-founder Evan Spiegel responded to Facebook's release of Poke last week by saying, "Welcome, Facebook. Seriously." His confidence, it turns out, was right on the mark.

While the two apps are strikingly similar, there are some differences, however.