Web Socket for messages

**Problem:**
We need a way to send/receive messages from the client to the server. The solution should allow for real time updates of messages and provide some sort of encryption layer to defend against man in the middle attacks.

**Solution:**
From my research so far, I think a web socket will suit this problem the best. Web sockets allow for real time bidirectional transmission of data between client and server and can use an encryption layer like SSL or TLS.

There are some tradeoffs like requiring a fully HTML5 complaint browser client and not providing intermediary/edge caching. However, weighting this I still think a web socket will be the best for the job, but I'd love to hear any other possible solutions that could solve this problem better.