GOOD MORNING MTV

MTV is starting to play music videos again.

Starting yesterday, AMTV, a six-hour block of music videos and advertising, will air from 3 a.m. to 9 a.m., Monday through Thursday.

The spots will also include news, interviews and performances in a throwback to the network’s origins as a 24-hour music video channel.

The Viacom-owned net has mostly shown music videos on its digital channels and as interstitial programming in its line-up of mostly reality fare.

MTV GM Stephen Friedman told the N.Y. Times the new schedule “creates more sampling opportunities” for viewers. “It gives us a much wider palette to experiment.”

The network is also bringing back Unplugged, its acoustic performance series.

According to Friedman, mornings would always be “complemented by a prime-time connection.”

In recent years, websites like YouTube, MySpace, AOL and Yahoo Music have become homes for music videos.

Friedman acknowledged that, in the past, music had not attracted “the level of viewership we hope for,” but nonetheless insists, “We know our audience wants more of it.”

The “AMTV” hours will not be subject to ratings. MTV is calling the morning block “a laboratory for advertising partnerships,” with companies offered an opportunity to sponsor all or part of the six hours, or inserting its brand into individual segments.

“We’re trying to move as the audience moves with their consumption habits,” Friedman said.