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Vodafone CEO unconcerned by Kabel Deutschland investor lawsuit

Vittorio Colao, the Chief Executive of Vodafone Group, attends The Times CEO summit at the Savoy Hotel in London June 21, 2011. Picture taken June 21, 2011. REUTERS/Ben Gurr/Pool

LONDON (Reuters) - Vodafone boss Vittorio Colao said on Tuesday he was not concerned by a lawsuit brought by U.S. activist hedge fund investor Elliott Management Corporation over the price Vodafone paid to take over German firm Kabel Deutschland. Vodafone completed the deal in October last year, securing over three quarters of the shares in Germany's largest cable company with its 7.7 billion euro (6.17 billion pounds) offer. In July this year Elliott, which still holds 13.5 percent of Kabel Deutschland, filed a lawsuit with a Munich court asking for a higher price. Elliott had asked for between 225 euros and 275 euros per share, instead of the 84.53 euros in cash that Vodafone paid to other shareholders. Last month Elliott said it has now asked the court to order the company to give it a full copy of a report prepared by a special auditor concerning the deal. The auditor, appointed at the company's annual general meeting last year, looked into the actions of Kabel Deutschland and Vodafone before and during their merger negotiations, which were announced in June 2013. "I don't think anybody should take this thing too seriously," Colao told reporters after unveiling first-half results on Tuesday, adding that the business would not be affected by the case. "We are very patient and we are a very long-term investor," he added. (This version adds dropped word "asking" in third paragraph). (Reporting by Kate Holton; Editing by Greg Mahlich)