LCI was launched on 24 June 1994 by Christian Dutoit on behalf of the media group TF1 as a pay television channel.

[1] The broadcast began at 8:30 pm with the live TV news programme presented by Françoise-Marie Morel.

The first guest was the CEO of the channel, Étienne Mougeotte.

The channel was also broadcast in Italy alongside TF1 on digital terrestrial television from 2004 to December 2006 on Dfree multiplex.

LCI is therefore received free of charge in almost all of Continental Europe.