KPN: An investment in innovation

KPN is the largest telecommunications and IT service provider in the Netherlands. By using Halon, KPN’s email platform is now able to match the market’s pace and stay competitive with other major players. But that’s not all. 

Problem

Email is not simply a means of communication for KPN. It is a crucial part of the solutions they offer. 

In recent years, increased competition and rapid development in the email service space have made it difficult to offer attractive email services. Digital transformation alone places a high demand on information security and privacy. 

Martijn Thie, architect at KPN, says:

 “As the largest ISP in the Netherlands, we believe in connecting people and enabling them to communicate with the world around them. We, therefore, aim to provide rich, secure email as a part of our portfolio. This became increasingly challenging as a result of the rapidly changing environment and increasingly sophisticated threats”.

The Mail Transfer Agent (MTA) that KPN was using required significant amounts of customisation and development for it to work. As a result, keeping up with competition from other email service providers became costly and time-consuming. As they were exploring options, they needed to consider the vendor’s choice. 

“We were going to overhaul a very large platform and therefore needed a partner we could rely on - one that was willing to engage”.

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Solution

When searching for a new email infrastructure, KPN needed:

  • Full flexibility with a rich set of capabilities and ready-made components

  • Development of differentiated services without writing everything from scratch

  • Reduction in development, maintenance and support costs

In Halon, they found a solution that filled those requirements. With Halon’s domain-specific scripting language and comprehensive feature library, they could now go to market with new functionality in weeks rather than months. 

“In Halon, we have found a great partner. They are not just delivering their software, but they’re really keen on working together. Halon is the most flexible, sophisticated and easy-to-manage MTA out there”.

Martijn Thie, Kpn

Results

“Implementing the whole Halon email infrastructure didn’t take longer than the implementation of a single small feature in the old system”. 

Since implementing Halon, KPN’s resources are able to be allocated effectively. They can now invest more time in innovation and increased competitiveness. Today, the KPN email platform is much richer, matching the market’s pace and rhythm ensuring they are staying competitive with other major players.