In what is being hailed as great news for Australia’s vast and vital geospatial sector, the long-established and highly respected online media channel, Spatial Source, has returned.
Spatial Source has been the trusted online news resource for the Australian geospatial community for more than a decade.
The story began in 2009 when Simon Cooper acquired Position magazine, which was the official publication of the Surveying and Spatial Sciences Institute (SSSI; later, the GCA), and which was distributed to all its members. This was followed in 2011 by the launch of Spatial Source, a website and monthly newsletter which quickly became weekly.
In addition, Spatial Source and Position have been the official media partner for LOCATE, Australia’s leading geospatial conference and exhibition, for more 10 years.
In November 2023, Spatial Source and Position were acquired by the Geospatial Council of Australia (GCA). But following the GCA going into liquidation in August 2025, the media titles, along with the LOCATE conference, were acquired by The Intermedia Group in mid-October. A new company, Geospatial Media & Events (GME), has been formed to manage both.
An expanded Spatial Source
This reinvigorated arrangement sees the return of Spatial Source’s editor, Jonathan Nally, who will oversee an increase in the frequency of the respected industry newsletter from weekly to twice weekly.
“Spatial Source has long been trusted as Australia’s independent source of news and views for the geospatial and surveying sectors,” said Nally.
“With more companies, organisations and individuals joining the sector all the time, and with technologies advancing at an incredible rate, it’s more important than ever that the Australian geospatial community has a dependable and reliable source of information.”
Although the re-acquisition of Spatial Source includes the rights to Position magazine, it has been decided that Position will no longer be published in favour of boosting the profile, presence and content of Spatial Source’s website and newsletters.
Flagship conference for 2026
The LOCATE conference and exhibition is one of the globe’s premier geospatial events, regularly attracting around 1,000 delegates and speakers and 80-plus exhibitors from across Australia and around the world.
Topics covered include surveying, geographical information systems (GIS), global satellite navigation systems (GNSS), mapping, Earth observation, hydrography, mining surveying and many more.
LOCATE will be in capable hands, with two well-known experts at the helm. Alicia Smith, Director of Will Organise, has successfully organised every LOCATE conference since 2017, and Simon Cooper, Publisher of Spatial Source, is an industry veteran with decades of events experience under his belt.
The next edition of LOCATE will be convened at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre from 24 to 26 November 2026, and held in conjunction with the major global conference for the International Society for Digital Earth (ISDE).
Instrumental in bringing the ISDE conference to Australia is Prof. Zaffar Sadiq Mohamed-Ghouse, Vice President of the ISDE and Director of Geospatial Advisory and Innovation at Woolpert Asia-Pacific.
“With the advancement of AI and the abundance of geospatial data being provided through open data initiatives, the concept of the Digital Earth along with emerging architectures and applications will be of great interest to LOCATE and ISDE delegates,” Prof. Mohamed-Ghouse said.
“The two events are expected to highlight synergies from data capture to data dissemination and supply chains, all of which are components of the Digital Earth.
“There will be commercial opportunities for businesses, research colloquia for young and experienced researchers, and a platform for governments to showcase initiatives that are benefiting the community.”
More information:
Spatial Source (www.spatialsource.com.au) is Australia’s trusted, independent source of news and views for the geospatial and surveying sectors. For all enquiries, please contact Jonathan Nally via jnally@intermedia.com.au.
LOCATE is Australia’s premier annual conference and exhibition for the rapidly expanding geospatial sector, bringing together experts from across the country and around the world. The next event will be held in Melbourne from 24 to 26 November 2026. For enquiries, please contact Alicia Smith, Will Organise, via asmith@willorganise.com.au.
The Intermedia Group (www.intermedia.com.au) is Australia’s leading B2B digital, event management and publishing business, with digital products, events and print titles providing audience members with high-quality, rich and up-to-date news, communications and connections across more than 20 industry sectors.
