Microsoft’s bacon recruitment drive goes cold

AN ATTEMPT by Redmond software giant Microsoft to lure developers with the promise of bacon has run into problems.

Microsoft's bacon-related recruitment drive for Kinect for Windows developers saw it sponsoring a food cart near Amazon's headquarters in South Lake Union, but according to the Seattle Times, the stunt finished early when the cart owner discovered that it was about people, and not gaming.

The recruiting stunt was set to continue its tour to neighbourhoods housing Google and Adobe offices, but this has now been cancelled.

The Seattle Times says that Dante Rivera, owner of Dante's Inferno Dogs - the bacon cart in question - thought that the event was designed to raise awareness of motion gaming toy Kinect, rather than the opportunity to work at a software company.

"It's a great campaign - very unique, very interesting," he said. "But I thought it was a promo event for Kinect. I wasn't aware it was a recruiting promotion. Just due to conflict of interest, I thought it would it would be best for me to step aside."

"I sell hot dogs. That's what I do. So I thought it was best to keep everybody happy," he added as he explained that no firm had complained about his presence. "I'm in business to make friends," he said. And hot dogs, of course. µ