The Walt Disney-owned ABC and MindShare said they would focus on the development of family-oriented programmes with the costs being shared between the two companies.
For MindShare, the idea is to create popular programmes that its clients can then advertise on and sponsor.
Marc Goldstein, chief executive of MindShare North America, said: "The door is open reasonably wide for anything we think is going to be compelling."
Goldstein cited the current US sitcom hit 'Eight Simple Rules for Dating My Teenage Daughter', starring the late John Ritter as one example of the kind of programme that MindShare would like to see developed.
The key to the deal, said Goldstein, was scripted programmes, and he ruled out any possibility that the two would be working on reality television shows. "We're not focusing in on reality (TV)," he said.
The deal follows the hiring earlier this year by MindShare of former CBS Entertainment president Peter Tortorici who will be central in the new relationship with ABC.
Alex Wallau, ABC network president, told Reuters: "This gives us a chance to have a collaborative relationship with our major clients early in the process, so that we know...we will meet the needs of the clients. This could be an important part of a portion of our primetime programming."
The deal follows several other similar attempts in the UK, Europe and the US to involve advertisers in developing programme ideas.
Most recently Nokia funded 'Fashion House', a reality-TV show which was beamed on to TV screens in Italy and the UK last week, although Swedes, Danes and Norwegians will catch their first glimpse in November.
Earlier this year, the Independent Television Commission investigated Five's controversial cookery show 'Dinner Doctors, created and paid for by Heinz, to see whether it contravenes rules on programme sponsorship.
In the US, advertisers including Ford and Coca-Cola have been involved in creating their own programmes to showcase products.
Ford, a major MindShare client, has been one of the most enthusiastic supporters of the new generation of advertiser-funded programmes.
Past efforts have included a series called 'No Boundaries', which ran on the Warner Bros network. The programme was designed to showcase Ford's line of sport-utility vehicles.
In 2000 Unilever in the UK signed Europe's biggest advertiser-supplied programming deal, paying around £6.9m for the rights to the film library of Columbia Tristar, which the advertiser swapped for airtime on Five.
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