"One could argue that the modern television viewer is a kind of hunter and gatherer who collects pieces of entertainment information that they care about across as many different platforms as possible," Jenkins continued.

"What MTV has come up with is really compelling in that they're empirically verifying some of the initial hypotheses we've put forward about the emotion people feel to material driving their consumption across media platforms," he said.

The study findings will be a key part of the marketing message to advertisers during this year's upfront selling season, said Sean Moran, the network's evp, ad sales. "It syncs up with what we've all talked about in the past, which is that multiplatform offerings deliver stronger impact for our consumers," he said. "The study shows that. Now we have to work it beyond just [The Hills] and utilize it with other MTV initiatives."

Part of the pitch to clients, said Moran, will be that MTV should be a must-look for advertisers targeting 12- to 34-year-old consumers, especially in light of ratings declines at the broadcast networks this season.

"That's our wheelhouse," he said. The message to clients: "We can be a replacement for your lost [broadcast] GRPs. Brand messages can turn the generators we've identified in the study into brand evangelists."

Rubinson of the ARF said it's a sensible strategy. "It becomes a co-branded experience. You start to feel about the brand the way you do about the program," he said.

In a way, said Rubinson, it's a modern-day form of sponsorship that occurred regularly in the 1950s, when advertisers would own shows, produce them, have their names embedded in the title, have live commercials and product placement in the show. "It became too expensive, but people are rediscovering it today in the form of cross-platform and branded entertainment and realize how powerful it can be," he said.

Tim Rosta, evp, integrated marketing at MTVN, puts it another way: "We think of our audience as 'Generation P,' an audience that is programming their own world and creating content around our shows.

"What we've learned from the study is the more our audience engages with brand across platform the greater level of brand affinity they have," Rosta continued. "When we infuse it appropriately, brands become part of the dialog giving us the ability to create brand ambassadors. They know somebody is paying for the programming so they embrace brands where we don't try to fool them."