In a statement, Van Toffler, president of MTV Music Group, said the deal is meant to help both companies take better advantage of the traditional, or “linear,” side of the music business and match it the growing digital offerings they have.

The two have long felt comfortable on the traditional side, but have had to scramble together on all kinds of partnerships to manage the digital end, especially as the music business has struggled. While MTVN has done well with its reality series and social networking tools, music has tended to be played down in those efforts.

Every so often, MTVN execs will stress music as part of its DNA. This deal probably won’t eclipse the revenues and buzz that it gets from shows like Jersey Shore, but it could help expand the efforts MTVN has put on its digital ad sales programs, most notably the Tribes ad network the Viacom unit runs as an extension of its TV brands VH1, CMT and Spike, as well other verticals aimed parents.

WMG may be using this arrangement to either show that it doesn’t need a deal with Vevo, or as some sort of leverage in forming an agreement. In any case, it reflects a strategy to partner one-on-one and not be part of a larger industry collective. For example, the MTVN arrangement comes several months after a video music deal with Hulu.