E-Business
Competition May Force Microsoft to Unbundle Kinect, Xbox One

A new packaged video game and entertainment console forecast from International Data Corporation (IDC) concludes that competitive pressures will lead Microsoft to unbundle the Kinect sensor from its Xbox One console in 2015, Nintendo’s Wii U will receive the equivalent of a $50 price cut worldwide in late 2014 or early 2015.
Similarly, Sony’s PlayStation 4 (PS4) will emerge with the largest global installed base of any console by the end of 2016.
The forecast additionally expects that, together, eighth generation consoles – Xbox One, Wii U and PS4 – will generate about 10% less retail revenue from console hardware and disc-based games than did seventh generation consoles – Xbox 360, Wii and PlayStation 3 (PS3) – combined through their first six years on the market.
Total eighth generation console hardware revenue is projected to be above the comparable seventh generation total at the end of this period as a result higher average selling prices (ASPs).
Disc-based software revenue is expected to be far lower.
The number of eighth generation game discs sold to retailers (sell-in) is, in fact, projected to be 45% below the seventh generation total through six years of availability.
If digital games and related online console revenue streams are included in the picture, however, the outlook for eighth generation consoles improves substantially.
The inclusion of digital console game spending, subscription revenue and other content/service/app purchases billed through online eighth generation console stores pushes total revenue up to within a few percent of the seventh generation total through the first six years of availability.
Rising digital revenue is forecast to nearly offset the fall in disc-based revenue.
“If Microsoft unbundles the Kinect sensor from the Xbox One console as we expect in 2015, this should lead to rough price parity with the PS4 and reset the sales dynamic at retail,” explained Lewis Ward, research director, Gaming at IDC.
Ward added, “We project this change will lead to enough of a console sales bump that Xbox One will emerge with the largest installed base of any console in North America by the end of 2016. The PS4 should still lead globally, but the unbundling of Kinect and Xbox One should move the sales needle enough to give Xbox One the installed base edge in the United States and Canada before the end of 2016.”
Other key findings from IDC’s Worldwide Video Game and Entertainment Console Hardware and Packaged Software 2014-2018 Forecast include the following:
Microconsoles (digital-only devices such as Amazon Fire TV that support TV-based gaming) aren’t considered in the forecast, but it appears that these devices will only erode demand for disc-playing consoles at the margins in the next few years.
China remains the biggest global wild card; despite the console ban repeal, early indicators suggests that eighth generation consoles will face large barriers to success in China.
Revenue is shifting towards developing economies despite limited Chinese demand; North American console gamers’ share of all console hardware and disc-based spending, for example, is forecast to slip 5% from 2014 to 2018.
The new forecast, Worldwide Video Game and Entertainment Console Hardware and Packaged Software 2014-2018 Forecast, includes a breakout of console hardware and disc-based software sales to retailers (sell-in) for North America, Western Europe, Asia/Pacific and a combined rest of the world (ROW) region.
Installed bases for the major console families are also forecast in the 73-page report, as is the number of unique console gamers and their average annual spending on console software.
E-Business
Transcorp Hotels Delivers Stellar H1 Results, Declares Over ₦1Bn Dividend

Transcorp Hotels Plc has delivered a stellar performance in the first half of 2025, recording a 60% year-on-year surge in revenue to ₦47.57 billion, up from ₦29.72 billion in H1 2024. Gross profit climbed 71% to ₦36.21 billion, maintaining a strong 76% margin despite inflation and operational headwinds.
The hospitality giant, a subsidiary of Transnational Corporation Plc, also announced an interim dividend payout of ₦1.024 billion — offering ₦0.10 per 50 kobo ordinary share to shareholders.
In a bold move, the company unveiled Nigeria’s largest corporate venue — the 5,000-seat Transcorp Centre — staking its claim as the new leader in event hospitality. Chairman Emmanuel Nnorom described the results as proof of Transcorp Hotels’ transformative strategies and unwavering investor commitment. MD/CEO Uzo Oshogwe attributed the success to relentless execution and a resilient business model.
Transcorp Hotels, renowned for iconic assets like Transcorp Hilton Abuja and its digital platform Aura, says it isn’t just leading Nigeria’s hospitality sector — it’s redefining excellence across Africa.
E-Business
Microsoft Servers Hacked by Chinese Groups

Chinese “threat actors” have hacked Microsoft’s SharePoint document software servers and targeted the data of the businesses using it, the firm has said.
China state-backed Linen Typhoon and Violet Typhoon as well as China-based Storm-2603 were said to have “exploited vulnerabilities” in on-premises SharePoint servers, the kind used by firms, but not in its cloud-based service.
The US tech giant has released security updates in response and has advised all on-premises SharePoint server customers to install them.
“Investigations into other actors also using these exploits are still ongoing,” Microsoft said in a statement.
The firm said it had “high confidence” the hackers would continue to target systems which have not installed its security updates.
It added that it would update its website blog with more information as its investigation continues.
Microsoft said it had observed attacks in which hackers had sent a request to a SharePoint server “enabling the theft of the key material by threat actors”.
Charles Carmakal, chief technology officer at Mandiant Consulting firm, a division of Google Cloud, told reporter, it was “aware of several victims in several different sectors across a number of global geographies”.
Carmakal said it appeared that governments and businesses that use SharePoint on their sites were the primary target.
A number of adversaries who stole material encoded by cryptography were then able to regain ongoing access to the victims’ SharePoint data, he said.
“This was exploited in a very broad way, very opportunistically before a patch was made available. That’s why this is significant,” Carmakal said.
Carmakal said the “China-nexus actor” was deploying techniques similar to previous campaigns associated with Beijing.
Microsoft said Linen Typhoon had “focused on stealing intellectual property, primarily targeting organizations related to government, defence, strategic planning, and human rights” for 13 years.
It added that Violet Typhoon had been “dedicated to espionage”, primarily targeting former government and military staff, non-governmental organizations, think tanks, higher education, the media, the financial sector and the health sector in the US, Europe, and East Asia.
Meanwhile, Storm-2603 was “assessed with medium confidence to be a China-based threat actor”.
E-Business
NIMC Warns Nigerians of Fake NIN Website

National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) has issued a public warning that it is not associated with NINcard.com.
According to the commission, the website has been circulating online to offer services for Nigerians seeking National Identification Number (NIN) services.
NIMC, in a post on its official X account on Wednesday, said, “NINcard.com is not in anyway affiliated to NIMC. Stay vigilant!”
The warning was accompanied by screenshots of fake payment receipts and OTP request pages from the website, both of which were boldly stamped “FAKE” by NIMC to alert the public.
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