MTV China will broadcast in the Guangdong province in the south of the country, where other Western broadcasters, including Rupert Murdoch's Star network, are also available. Its service will launch in April.
Since 1995, the channel has been broadcasting in English in hotels and foreign compounds, and some MTV-branded programming appears on terrestrial and cable channels across China, reaching 70m households.
MTV China will have more of a local flavour. Sumner Redstone, chairman and chief executive officer of Viacom, said: "The 24-hour MTV channel will offer local content that caters specifically to the music tastes and culture of young people in China."
Other MTV services in Asia are in India, Indonesia, Korea, the Philippines, South-East Asia, Thailand, Japan and Australia.
The deal will also see Nickelodeon distribute Chinese-language programming on both DVD and the VCD format that is popular in the region.
"We look forward to introducing many new Nickelodeon properties to China -- including Nickelodeon's signature animation," Redstone said.
The Chinese Communist Party has kept a tight grip on the media, restricting access to broadcast, print and internet news and opinions. In the past, the BBC has seen its services taken off the air for discussing taboo subjects such as the religious sect Falun Gong.
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