As a preparation towards the fourth Asian Games in 1962, the Indonesian government intends to establish a television station in Indonesia.

TVRI began its trial broadcast with the 17th Indonesian Independence Day ceremony on 17 August 1962.

The event was broadcast from the courtyard of the Merdeka Palace in Jakarta, in black-and-white format and supported by a 100W backup transmitter.

On 24 August, TVRI officially aired for the first time with a live broadcast of the 1962 Asian Games opening ceremony from Gelora Bung Karno Main Stadium.

This is reinforced by the "mobile production station" (Stasiun Produksi Keliling) which was formed gradually starting in 1977 in several provincial capitals.

The morning and afternoon broadcast is then presented only on Sundays, as well as on national holidays and state events.

TVRI did not have the financial means to secure the rights to air the 1990 FIFA World Cup live.

As the COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia urging the government to appeal Indonesians to "work, study, and pray at home", the Ministry of Education and Culture renewed again its partnership with TVRI, this time to broadcast educational programming on a dedicated block on the TVRI network starting 13 April 2020 to 30 March 2021.

Its current flagship news program is Klik Indonesia, aired four times a day in the morning, noon, afternoon, and the evening.