Facebook-owned Whatsapp has added some new features for group chats to its platform.

The new features arrive at a time when competition among online messaging services is rising, with rivals like Telegram and WeChat gaining huge popularity.

Here are some of the features being rolled out by the messaging app and what they allow you to do.

Whatsapp groups can now be defined with a description appearing at the top of the chat that sets out the purpose of the conversation.

The feature is ideal for users that want to join chats devoted to certain interests, something Whatsapp rival Telegram has become known for.

You can now catch up on a conversation in which your name was mentioned but you haven’t been following for a while.

A new “@” button on the bottom right corner of the group chat will let users see when they have been mentioned. This is similar to a feature offered by workplace messaging app Slack that highlights when users have been mentioned in a conversation.

You can also find people in a group with a search function on the group’s information page.

You can no longer be booted from chats you set up yourself.

Admins in a group chat will also be able to restrict who can change a group’s title, description and image.

Previously when you left a group on Whatsapp there was nothing in place to stop someone from adding you back in — over and over again.

The messaging service has now changed that so that you can’t be constantly invited back into a conversation.