TEL AVIV Facebook Inc., the Menlo Park, Calif., social-media firm, is discussing the prospect of acquiring WhatsApp, the cross-platform mobile-messaging application, TechCrunch reported on Sunday, citing sources close to the matter. The website said that for Facebook, acquiring WhatsApp would be another connection to mobile consumers, a strategy that Facebook’s chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, has said is critical to the company’s growth.

