Microsoft + Yahoo: Still Not Sexy to Job Applicants?

Among the many uncertainties about a Microsoft-Yahoo marriage is whether the combined company would gain any sex appeal in the Silicon Valley recruiting market, reports the New York Times. If both are washed up compared to job fair belles like Google and Facebook, would joining help them prevail in the more-competitive-than-ever race for talent?

Not according to one Stanford computer science student, who said a Microsoft-Yahoo coupling “definitely decreases my interest in either company.” As one tech exec put it, “Engineers here want to work on tomorrow’s technology, not yesterday’s.” Commentators also questioned both companies’ cool factor. But one Yahoo employee said the chance to beat Google was enough to keep him on board.