RadioShack agrees to mediation over sale of customer data

WILMINGTON, Del. - RadioShack has agreed to mediation with state attorneys general concerned about the electronic retailer's planned sale of customer data as part of its bankruptcy reorganization.

A RadioShack attorney told a Delaware bankruptcy judge Tuesday that the mediation, which will include a consumer privacy ombudsman, will start May 14. That's after a scheduled May 11 auction for intellectual property assets including the names and addresses of millions of RadioShack customers.

The Texas attorney general, joined formally by counterparts in Oregon, Pennsylvania and Tennessee, has objected to the planned sale, arguing that RadioShack's description of the information it plans to sell is inadequate and potentially misleading.

RadioShack is seeking to sell 8.5 million customer email addresses and 65 million complete customer name and address files, along with what it calls "transaction data."