The pathway resulting in the breakdown of diacetylchitobiose into simpler products, including glucosamine and glucosamine. The catabolism proceeds by the deacetylation of diacetylchitobiose, producing acetate and GlcN-GlcNAc; the latter is cleaved to produce glucosamine (GlcN) and N-acetylglucosamine (GlcNAc). The N-acetylglucosamine (GlcNAc) is then deacetylated to produce glucosamine (GlcN) and acetate.