E-Business
Notebook Year-End Sales Drive Traditional PC Market in EMEA- IDC
Traditional PC shipments in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) stabilized in the fourth quarter of 2016, registering a close-to-zero decline (-0.2% YoY) and reaching 20.7 million units, according to International Data Corporation (IDC). Notebooks performed well across all EMEA regions (2.9% YoY), growing 2.7% in Western Europe and 3.3% in CEMA.
The strong demand was triggered by the commercial space, which grew 10.1% in Western Europe and 1.2% in Central and Eastern Europe.
Consumer notebook demand was positive in Central and Eastern Europe (4.4%) and the Middle East and Africa (5.8%), while Western Europe was stronger than expected but still contracting (-2.4%). While notebooks experienced a strong momentum in 2016Q4, desktops continued to fall, posting an overall 6.9% decline in EMEA due to a weak consumer demand.
Annually, traditional PC shipments fell to 71.6 million units in 2016, down 6.1% from 2015. Throughout the year, notebooks outperformed the desktop market thanks to strong demand in the commercial space.
Windows 10 did not drive extensive renewals in 2016. However, ultraslims targeting enterprise mobility needs, as well as attractive Chromebooks offerings, especially in the education sector during the back-to-school season, led to strong demand for notebooks in the latter half of the year.
“The traditional PC market registered an impressive performance in 2016Q4, and markets are clearly stabilizing in EMEA after a challenging year 2015. Both businesses and consumers leveraged year-end promotions to purchase notebooks and demand for new solutions was strong ahead of price increase expected in the upcoming quarters.” said Andrea Minonne, research analyst, IDC EMEA Personal Computing. Black Friday promotions and Christmas holidays contributed to energize the notebook market in 2016Q4. This also resulted in strong consumer performance in some countries. These drivers created a more-favorable-than-expected scenario for the EMEA traditional PC market, with Western Europe growing 0.4%, and Central and Eastern Europe and Middle East and Africa declining respectively -1.2% and -1.8% YoY compared with last year.
In 2016Q4 the Western European market appeared very fragmented. As the pound has become a turbulent currency following Brexit in the U.K., the British traditional PC market was impacted negatively (-6.2%). Some challenges were experienced also in Southern European economies, such as Spain, due to local political instabilities, with contributed to a YoY decline of shipment with France and Italy close to stabilization.
Commercial notebook demand and some deals in the public sector triggered a positive performance in the Nordics, and in Germany, where overall traditional PC shipments were above market average.
“The Western European PC market performed better than expected in 2016Q4, thanks to notebooks in both the consumer and commercial segments.” said Malini Paul, senior research analyst, IDC EMEA Personal Computing. “While promotions around Black Friday and the post-Christmas period supported the strong seasonality of the holiday period, fulfilling backlogs from 2016Q3 due to component shortages also contributed to the sell-in uptake in the consumer space.”
The traditional PC market in the CEMA region reported an annual decline of 1.5%. Both regions performed better than forecast in the portable PC market, recording single digit increases YoY. “In 2016Q4 the CEE region reported a slight decline of 1.2% YoY, thanks to notebook results at 3.3% YoY. After a long period of decline, the Russian notebook market recorded double-digit growth, boosted by demand in both the consumer and commercial spaces. The same strong growth was reported across the Baltic States, as well as Kazakhstan and Ukraine, offsetting the declines previously reported,” said Nikolina Jurisic, product manager, IDC CEMA.
“The desktop market, on the other hand, reported a contraction of 9.1% YoY; low levels of deals were recorded across the region.
The overall PC consumer market performed positively compared to the commercial segment. A lack of IT spending in the enterprise was the main inhibitor.”
The MEA traditional PC market recorded a mild contraction of 1.8% YoY despite the numerous ongoing macroeconomic challenges, ranging from low oil prices to currency fluctuations which are effecting several countries in the region. The Turkish traditional PC market came in strongly thanks to several year-end promotions led by channels and a healthy commercial demand. The other big markets of the region, namely South Africa, UAE, and the Rest of Middle East sub-region, remained close to flat YoY, while Saudi Arabia suffered a decline, being one of the most impacted due to low crude oil prices.
Vendor Highlights
Traditional PC market consolidation is progressing, and the share of the top 5 vendors grew in 2016Q4. The top 5 players accounted for 76.8% of the total market volume vs 72.5% in 2015Q4.
HP Inc experienced a strong market share increase (25.5%) and continued to reinforce its position. Strong consumer notebook results triggered most of the gain, while commercial posted growth too.
Lenovo also increased its share to 21.1%, driven by a strong performance in the notebook space, where the company continues to outperform the market in both the consumer and commercial segments.
Dell’s market share was boosted by a solid double-digit performance in the commercial notebook space, allowing the vendor to reach an 11.1% share. The vendor’s gains were also strong in desktop.
ASUS faced some market challenges due to component shortages. The company is consolidating its position in the commercial notebook space in CEMA.
Acer Group’s market share increased compared with last year, thanks to a strong performance in the consumer notebook space, in particular in Western Europe.
Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) has directed all Data Controllers and Data Processors of Major Importance (DCPMIs), yet to register with the commission to do so immediately.
This followed a Federal High Court judgment affirming NDPC statutory powers to designate and register such entities.
DCPMIs are entities operating in Nigeria that handle sensitive personal data or large volumes of information, requiring mandatory registration with the NDPC under the Nigeria Data Protection Act (NDPA).
In a statement issued on Tuesday by Babatunde Bamigboye, head of Legal, Enforcement and Regulations at the NDPC, described the judgment as a major milestone for data accountability and regulatory oversight in Nigeria.
The commission said the ruling arose from a suit filed by Emmanuel Harunna against the NDPC in Emmanuel Harunna v. NDPC (FHC/L/CS/1116/2024), in which the applicant sought a declaration that Point of Sale agents were not Data Controllers or Processors of Major Importance under the Nigeria Data Protection Act and requested a perpetual injunction restraining the commission from registering them.
According to the statement, Justice F.N. Ogazi examined the commission’s Guidance Notice on Registration alongside Sections 5(d), 6(c), 44, 45 and 65 of the Nigeria Data Protection Act before concluding that the commission acted within its statutory powers in designating entities under the Major Data Processing – Ordinary High Level category as Data Controllers and Processors of Major Importance.
Quoting the judgment, the statement read, “The Nigeria Data Protection Act was enacted to promote accountability, transparency and responsible data governance. Registration enables the Respondent to identify entities engaged in significant data processing activities, monitor compliance.”
It added that the court held that, “Far from undermining the constitutional right to privacy, the registration framework is one of the statutory mechanisms designed to safeguard that very right by subjecting data controllers and data processors to effective regulatory oversight.”
The statement further quoted the court as saying, “Looking at the recitals of the Guidance Notice, there is every indication that the Guidance Notice is also aimed at protecting the privacy and security of data subjects, thus bringing the registration requirement of the Guidance Notice within the protective shield of Section 45 of the 1999 Constitution.”
According to the commission, the court also held that, “Remarkably, Section 63 of the Data Protection Act provides that the provisions of the Act shall prevail over any other law inconsistent with its provisions on matters relating to the processing of personal data.”
Reacting to the judgment, the commission described the decision as a significant boost to Nigeria’s data protection regime.
“The Commission appreciates the ground-breaking efforts of the court towards the advancement of the jurisprudence relating to data accountability in Nigeria, as eloquently demonstrated in this case,” the statement read.
Following the ruling, Vincent Olatunji, national commissioner and chief executive officer, had directed every Data Controller and Processor of Major Importance that had yet to comply with the registration requirement to register without delay.
The commission warned that entities failing to comply with the registration requirement could face legal consequences.
“Failure to register creates serious legal liabilities under the law, while compliance with registration requirements builds public trust and safeguards the fundamental rights and freedoms of data subjects in Nigeria,” the statement added.
The University of Nigeria (UNN) is set to partner with The Roxettes Group to establish a research and innovation centre focused on artificial intelligence (AI), smart and green mobility, and digital technologies, in a move aimed at strengthening research, entrepreneurship and technology-driven industrial development.
Chairman of The Roxettes Group, Arc. Dr. Kaycee Orji-Kelechi, announced the proposed partnership while delivering his acceptance speech after receiving an Honorary Doctor of Business Administration (Honoris Causa) during the university’s convocation ceremony.
The proposed facility, to be known as the Dr. Kaycee Orji Centre for Artificial Intelligence, Smart/Green Mobility and Digital Innovation, is expected to provide a platform for research, innovation and collaboration between academia and industry, with a focus on developing commercially viable solutions to local and continental challenges.
Orji-Kelechi said the initiative was conceived as a long-term investment in human capital and technological advancement rather than simply another physical infrastructure project.
He said the vision was to position the University of Nigeria among Africa’s leading institutions in artificial intelligence, smart mobility and digital innovation through research, entrepreneurship and technology development.
According to him, the centre will house five specialised laboratories covering artificial intelligence and machine learning, smart and green mobility, robotics and the Internet of Things (IoT), digital finance and financial technology, as well as cloud computing and advanced data centre technologies.
He also announced plans for the proposed Kaycee Orji Founders Innovation Challenge, an annual programme intended to identify, mentor and support innovative ideas from students, researchers and academic staff with the potential to become scalable businesses.
“Every student of this University should know that a great idea conceived in a classroom should have a pathway to becoming a patent, a startup, a global enterprise, and a solution that transforms society,” he said.
Orji-Kelechi disclosed that preliminary conceptual work on the project had commenced, with architectural and engineering designs being prepared by K.KH Contractors Ltd., a subsidiary of The Roxettes Group.
He added that discussions with the university would begin on identifying a suitable site for the project, while a comprehensive proposal containing architectural drawings, engineering designs and an implementation framework would be submitted after completion of the design phase.
Reflecting on his career, Orji-Kelechi said Africa must move beyond consuming innovation to creating it through investment in manufacturing, technology and entrepreneurship.
“We have pursued one simple vision: that Nigeria and Africa must move from consumption to production; from importing innovation to creating it; and from waiting for opportunities to building them,” he said.
He urged graduating students to see their education as a foundation for solving societal challenges through innovation, leadership and enterprise, adding that he remained committed to promoting industrial development, youth empowerment and sustainable economic growth.
The proposed collaboration forms part of broader efforts to strengthen university-industry partnerships, which are increasingly seen as critical to improving research commercialisation, innovation capacity and technology-led economic development in Nigeria.
National Population Commission (NPC) has announced commencement of full digital registration of births and deaths through the VitalReg platform, which became operational nationwide on July 1, 2026.
Chidi Ezeoke, federal commissioner representing Anambra, disclosed this in Awka during a press conference to announce commencement of full digital birth and death registration under the Electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (E-CRVS) system and the marking of World Population Day commemorated every July 11.
He revealed that a total of 131 registration centres had been opened in the 21 local government headquarters and several communities in the state, adding that more centres would be opened later.
Ezeoke described the initiative as a major milestone in Nigeria’s Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (CRVS) system, to ensure every birth and death in the country was captured through a digitally enabled registration platform.
“It builds on the launch of the E-CRVS system and the inauguration of the National Coordination Committee on Civil Registration and Vital Statistics by President Bola Tinubu on Nov. 8, 2023.
“A total of 4,011 functional registration centres has been established across the 774 LGAs of the federation and the commission iswas working to expand the number to about 8,000.
“In Anambra, 131 registration centres have been opened in the 21 local government headquarters and several communities. More centres had been proposed for the state,” he said.
According to the Commissioner, the VitalReg platform would provide faster registration services, 24-hour online access, digital certificate issuance where applicable, reduced paperwork and waiting time, improved data validation and a more secure national CRVS database.
While noting that the platform would serve as a foundational database to support other national data systems and strengthen interoperability across Nigeria’s digital identity ecosystem, Ezeoke urged Nigerians and other stakeholders to support the initiative by ensuring prompt registration of all births and deaths.
Speaking on the 2026 World Population Day themed, “Realising the Hopes and Aspirations of Young People – Today and for the Future”, the Commissioner called for greater investment in education, healthcare, skills development, decent employment opportunities and youth participation in governance for sustainable national development.
Earlier, Mr Obiakonwa Okagwu, state director, NPC, said the occasion served as a reminder of great opportunities provided to harness young people’s capabilities, which he said would shape the future of the country when adequately harnessed.
He called on residents to take registration of births and deaths as national responsibility, just as he urged the media to take the message on civil registration to all parts of the State.
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