1. Company & Business
  2. Network & IT Infrastructure
  3. Products & Services
  4. Innovation
  5. Privacy & Security
  6. Society
  7. External recognition

Review of the year

What happened at kpn
in 2019

Company & Business

“We have to shape a KPN that really puts our strategy into practice. What you want to be on the outside, you must also be on the inside.”

Lisette Oosterbroek Vice President Organization Development & Change
Jaaroverzicht Introduction Het Bedrijf
January 2019

KPN is fully committed to the KPN brand

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May 2019

KPN to sell NLDC to DWS

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June 2019

Maximo Ibarra resigns as KPN CEO

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October 2019

KPN announces new CEO, CFO transition and expands Board of Management

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Network & IT Infrastructure

“Proud that we can connect households with the most future-proof network there is”

Willem Offerhaus Director Executive Relations & Strategic Projects
Jaaroverzicht Introduction Netwerk
February 2019

KPN introduces PON technology for speeds up to 10 Gbps over fiber (FTTH)

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April 2019

KPN mobile network assessed as ‘outstanding’

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JO Netwerk Items Mobiel Netwerk2
June 2019

KPN accelerates fiber optic rollout in The Hague

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June 2019

KPN increases monitoring of 112 and wants further safeguarding of access

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July 2019

Watch HD-quality TV via Digitenne from KPN throughout the Netherlands

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November 2019

KPN and Tampnet work together on mobile coverage in the North Sea for business customers

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December 2019

Large-scale installation of KPN fiber optic in Amsterdam

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JO Netwerk Items Glasvezel Amsterdam
December 2019

KPN to offer gigabyte speeds on fiber optics network

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Products & Services

“Thanks to focusing on the KPN brand, we are able to simplify and center our IT and customer data. That way we can make the customer journey perfectly digital and simple.”

Stijn Nuijten Executive Vice President Marketing & Products
Jaaroverzicht Introduction Pen D
March 2019

KPN introduces new mobile subscriptions for SMEs, with more data

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September 2019

KPN is “The network of the Netherlands”

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October 2019

KPN introduces KPN Hussel: choice-free and flexible subscription

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November 2019

Watch TV without a reciever? KPN Smart TV app now also for LG TV’s

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JO PD Items Zonder Kastje

Innovation

“5G is an essential catalyst for further digitalizing Dutch society”

Babak Fouladi KPN Chief Technology & Digital Officer
Jaaroverzicht Introduction Innovatie
June 2019

KPN and QuTech join forces to make quantum internet a reality

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JO Netwerk Items Quantum Internet
June 2019

KPN invests in online patient portal provider Pharmeon

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June 2019

Smart innovation always gives emergency service vehicles the green light

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JO Netwerk Items Hulpdiensten
October 2019

KPN tests 5G network between multiple locations in the Netherlands

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Privacy & Security

“Cyber threats are on the increase. It’s up to KPN to make the Netherlands more secure.”

Paul Slootmaker Chief Information Security Officer
Jaaroverzicht Introduction Security2
March 2019

KPN publishes sixth edition of the European Cyber Security Perspectives

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April 2019

KPN is integrating all its security services to form the security company of the Netherlands: KPN Security

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May 2019

Telecom providers join forces to combat smartphone fraud

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July 2019

KPN Security big winner in procurement for 330 municipalities

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October 2019

KPN maintains global top ranking at Cyberlympics

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Society

“The KPN Mooiste Contact Fonds has been bringing people together for nearly 12 years”

Mark Versteegen Head of Sponsorships
Jaaroverzicht Introduction Samenleving
February 2019

KPN and NVVK enter into first 'new-style covenant' relating to debt collection

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JO Samenleving Items Incassobeleid
March 2019

New at KPN: swap an old phone for a new one

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September 2019

KPN partners in the National AI course for high school students

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JO Samenleving Items AI
September 2019

New teaching material helps low-literate people with digital skills

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External recognition

“Our customers have noticed our environmental efforts. With our recycle programs for our inhome equipment and mobile phones What’s more, our new UHD TV receiver has an energy-saving sleep mode and requires 64% less plastic to produce.”

Jeroen Cox Senior Manager Energy & Environment
Jaaroverzicht Introduction Externe Erkening
January 2019

KPN wint DDMA Customer Data Award

Lees meer (NL)
February 2019

Recognition for KPN from Tweakers.net and the Consumers’ Association

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April 2019

KPN is once again among the companies with the best reputation in the Netherlands

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July 2019

KPN recognized as the strongest Dutch brand

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September 2019

KPN again in top 3 most sustainable telecom companies in the world (DJSI)

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JO Externe Erkenning Items DJSI
September 2019

KPN wins “Best Dutch Chain Store” in category Telecom

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Jaaroverzicht Introduction Netwerk
Network

Network of the future continues growing

For more than 100 years, KPN has ensured that everyone in the Netherlands is properly connected – with each other and now, with all the exciting things made possible by the latest digital techniques. We will continue doing this in the future. KPN’s ambition is to have about one million additional FttH households throughout the Netherlands by the end of 2021, on top of the 2.3 million households by end 2018. Construction or advanced preparation for this have already begun in more than 70 areas.

Following Zwolle, Apeldoorn, Nijmegen, Arnhem, Alkmaar and The Hague, Amsterdam is the next big city to get fiber connections.

“We are proud to be able to roll out fiber in our Dutch capital, and thus fulfill our main social responsibility: connecting households with the most future-proof network there is,” says Willem Offerhaus, KPN director Executive Relations & Strategic Projects. “What’s more, we’re talking about a substantial investment, because the installation of fiber optic in a city like Amsterdam is complex.”

Fiber is very stable, has huge capacity, and offers equal download and upload speeds. Data usage will continue to increase substantially in the coming years, not only through more intensive internet usage and an increasing number of devices, but also because of online gaming, Artificial Intelligence and the Internet of Things.

Jaaroverzicht Introduction Innovatie
Innovation

5G a step closer

KPN is working to ensure its mobile network is technically prepared for 5G. In our five 5G Field Labs, we are cooperating with customers and technology partners to study the added value of 5G applications. This involves carrying out extensive tests on the latest radio technology and antennas, and using 5G frequencies in combination with the latest generation of smartphones. A mobile download speed of 1.3 Gbps has already been achieved in one of those tests.

To carry out the 5G tests, KPN is using two 5G frequency bands that will be the first to be made available in Europe: the 700 MHz band, which will be available for 5G in the Netherlands after the spectrum auction in 2020, and the 3.5 GHz band, which is expected to be available from 2022. The 26 GHz band will also be used for testing. The release date in the Netherlands is not yet known.

As well as higher download and upload speeds, 5G provides lower latency and greater precision. That is of particular value for the ever-increasing use of mobile video applications, including augmented and virtual reality.

“5G will create countless new possibilities. In the beginning the added value will be limited for consumers, but B2B will really benefit from 5G, certainly in the industrial sector. That makes 5G an essential catalyst for further digitalizing Dutch society,” says KPN Chief Technology & Digital Officer Babak Fouladi.

Jaaroverzicht Introduction Security
Security

KPN maintains global top ranking at Cyberlympics

The ethical hackers of KPN (SectorC) came third in last year’s Global Cyberlympics in Oshawa (Canada). A great achievement that we can be very proud of.

Reaching the top is hard, staying at the top is perhaps even harder. In 2018 our ethical hackers became world champion – a performance that is hard to replicate in a global hacking competition that gets stronger ever year. More than 300 teams from 75 countries competed at the most recent edition of the Cyberlympics. Despite that, the members of the KPN CISO team managed to get to the final once again. They were on the podium, just like last year. This time with a terrific third place.

KPN CISO took part in the European preliminary round in September 2019. They won this stage convincingly, taking the European title in the process. The global final was held a month later, with SectorC battling it out for eight hours against the world’s best hacking teams. The eleven finalists had to solve various challenging technical tasks. In addition to expertise and quality, good cooperation was also essential.

The Global Cyberlympics is a prestigious international cybersecurity competition in which the skills of information security professionals are tested in the field of ethical hacking, computer networking and forensic research.

Jaaroverzicht Introduction Samenleving
Society

Joining forces to combat social isolation

Lending a sympathetic ear to people who suffer from anxieties, sadness and other problems: this is what Luisterlijn volunteers have been doing for more than 60 years. In 2018, Luisterlijn received almost half a million calls. Regrettably, only 330,000 of those went answered due to a lack of volunteers.

To improve the situation, last year KPN Mooiste Contact Fonds (KPN MCF) initiated a cooperation between Luisterlijn and Nationale Vereniging de Zonnebloem (National Association The Sunflower), a volunteer organization that helps people with a physical disability. The extra volunteers receive professional training in conversational and listening skills, and can work from home. They have conversations that can be meaningful not only for the other person but also for themselves. At the same time, they help reduce the shortage of volunteers, meaning that fewer phone calls go unanswered.

KPN Mooiste Contact Fonds supports the initiative financially and by providing volunteers, allowing us to show that we are genuinely the network of the Netherlands. “KPN MCF has been connecting people with one another for nearly 12 years,” says Mark Versteegen, Head of Sponsorships. “I am proud that we have been able to make a contribution to this initiative. Together with De Zonnebloem and Luisterlijn, we lend a sympathetic ear to more and more people and helping them emerge from their social isolation.”

Download the full report

Integrated Annual Report 2019 Single navigation 28feb / 4 MB Download
Integrated Annual Report 2019 Spread navigation 28feb / 4 MB Download
Dutch Single navigation 28feb / 1 MB Download
Consolidated Financial Statements / 44 KB Download
Social figures / 45 KB Download
Environmental figures / 74 KB Download
GRI Index / 106 KB Download