MTV Brasil was a Brazilian over-the-air television network owned by Grupo Abril focused on the youth and entertainment. The network was launched on 20 October 1990, as the first specialty television network to broadcast over-the-air, becoming the local version of MTV. It was the third MTV iteration launched in the world, and the first to broadcast via terrestrial television.

The network headquarters was at 52 Avenida Professor Alfonso Bovero, Sumaré, São Paulo city, which was formerly the headquarters of Rede Tupi. This building was listed by Conselho de Defesa do Patrimônio Histórico (Condephaat) as having an historical heritage, becoming the first to be officially listed in the city.

At the beginning of the 2010s, the channel was considered the largest youth network and the seventh largest terrestrial TV network in Brazil; it is still counted by Meio&Mensagem newspaper as the fifth most-viewed TV network in the country. MTV Brasil was the first network in the country dedicated to young people, targeting the "A/B audience" between the ages of 15 and 29. It is also first TV network in Brazil to broadcast their programming 24-hours-a-day, morning and night.

In June 2013, Grupo Abril began the process of returning the MTV brand to ViacomCBS (now Paramount Global) due to the major financial crisis that both the group and the broadcaster were facing. The network ended its broadcasts on 30 September 2013. Viacom, in turn, relaunched MTV on pay TV a day later. On terrestrial television, the network was replaced by Ideal TV.

MTV, acronym of Music Television, debuted in the United States on 1 August 1981 under the control of Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment. Today owned by Viacom, the subscription network revolutionized the music industry worldwide with the popularization of music videos, that were showcased by hosts known as video jockeys, or "VJ's". In Brazil, the company has partnered with the Rede Bandeirantes for the broadcasting of special events, such as awards shows.

The music video itself first came to Brazil through the Rede Globo's weekly news and entertainment show Fantástico. The news magazine was the only TV show to produce and broadcast this type of programming, until the early 1980s, when the independent music video producers wanted to escape the standards imposed by the network. At the same time, MTV appeared in the North American market. Throughout the decade, other programs dedicated to music videos were created, like Clip Trip, on TV Gazeta, Som Pop, on TV Cultura, FMTV and Manchete Clip Show from the defunct Rede Manchete and the Clip Clip, broadcast by Rede Globo.

MTV Brasil was launched on 20 October 1990, only to metropolitan São Paulo, through UHF channel A32 and metropolitan Rio de Janeiro, through VHF channel A9 (with TV Corcovado as an affiliate station). The first video shown was Garota de Ipanema, sung by Marina Lima.^{[citation needed]}

In 1996, Viacom acquired 50% of the network, which was, until then, a wholly owned subsidiary of Abril.^{[citation needed]}