If you send a hint about a difficult conversation (#reunite, #breakup), what are the odds that the recipient won't be able to guess who sent it and the gist of the secret? Is this any better than just having the conversation directly?
If you don't send a hint, it seems extremely unlikely that the other person will use the service with the exact same hashtag, as another commenter pointed out.
Great question. One answer is that it gives the recipient plausible deniability (I think I'm using that term right, sorta). They have the power to not respond even though they probably know who the sender is. And if they don't try to respond then hey they can never be 100% sure of who the sender is. And the sender can never be 100% sure their message was even received. So basically it gives both party's ego/pride some breathing room.
As far as the "no hint" case, well yes the service would need to be in the zeitgeist in order to have utility. Who knows maybe one of the big social networks will steal the idea. They can go for it! Just remember little ole me in the credits section somewhere, is all I ask. :)
If you don't send a hint, it seems extremely unlikely that the other person will use the service with the exact same hashtag, as another commenter pointed out.
So, where is the utility?