For the first time, on 10 June 1996 the channel went on the air as a stand-alone program after broadcasting regularly on the Dresdner frequency of RTL (Regionalfenster 18: 00-18: 30 o'clock), later VOX, the regional broadcast "Drehscheibe Dresden" has been.

At the beginning the program of Dresden Fernsehen consisted of the hourly repeated turntable as well as a screen newspaper with music.

At this time, some older series, such as, E.g. "A Bayer on Ruegen", and films by the Kirch group.

Until the end of 2016, Sachsen Fernsehen GmbH & Co. Fernseh-Betriebs KG still had the broadcasting license of the Saxon State Media Institute for Local Television in Dresden, but had transferred its production to regional partners after financial difficulties.

By the end of 2005, the company ElbTV Film und Fernsehproduktion GmbH had been producing programs for the station.