With cable upfront presentations kicking off this month, Media Life will carry a series of network profiles with information important to media buyers and planners heading into negotiations. This is the fifth in the series.

DIY has been around eight years, which may come as a surprise to many in media. It’s been that far under the radar as a cable network.

But while it may not get the buzz, DIY, which offers a lot of how-to advice on home repair and cars, is a favorite among media buyers for the audience it delivers—mostly males.

Now DIY is anxious to push its audience over the critical 50 million barrier, the number of homes it reaches. It’s an important figure because it’s what media buyers often look to before considering networks in media buys. Even though it’s midsized, DIY gets left off plans because it’s still under the magic number.

But media buyers are not so sure it’s the right strategy. There’s the risk of diluting its niche appeal to advertisers by adding shows, such as reality programs, that may draw viewers but could just as easily run on other networks.

DIY has been rolling out reality shows like those on sister networks HGTV and Food Network for a few years, and it is increasing their number while aiming to stay true to its do-it-yourself identity. For example, just a couple of weeks ago the network launched a high-profile tie-in with NBC’s “Today Show” for its continuing reality show “Desperate Landscapes.”

But it’s also putting on other shows that veer from its brand, like the upcoming multipart special “Celebrity Rides: Dillon and the Rebel,” in which Kevin Dillon from HBO’s “Entourage” customizes a 1955 Porsche Spyder.

The question is just how many such shows it can pull off before it begins to dilute its identity.

“If you have a couple of shows that move the needle away from the brand, that’s okay,” says Jordan Breslow, director of broadcast research at MediaCom. “But the brand is created around do-it-yourselfers, so they still need to do that.”

None of this is lost on DIY executives.

“The subject is always information but it’s about couching that information in an entertaining fashion,” says Kathleen Finch, senior vice president and general manager of DIY Network.

The network’s identity
DIY is setting out to beef up its audience and subscriber base by easing its focus from straightforward instructions to instructive shows that are entertaining. Media buyers would like it to stay true to its do-it-yourself niche.

“There are certain networks that when you say their name you know what they stand for,” says Miraj Parikh, director of Spark Communications, a division of Starcom MediaVest Group. “That’s a huge draw [for advertisers].”

The network’s target audience
DIY mostly targets upscale homeowners aged 25-54, with a male skew.

The network’s ratings
DIY doesn’t have Nielsen ratings it can publicize yet but it does have limited daypart ratings it uses to sell ad time. The network will only say its primetime ratings and total-day ratings are up 50 percent from February 2007.

In March, DIY had 47 million subscribers, up from 43 million households last year, according to Nielsen.

The network’s competitive set
DIY for now is nearly alone in targeting men with how-to programming, but it competes with other 25-54 networks like Discovery and History. As it moves toward more reality shows it’ll increasingly compete for viewers with other Scripps networks: HGTV, Food and Fine Living.

What’s new for 2008/09
DIY has been moving away from pure instructional programming for a few years to reality shows like the continuing “Cool Tools” and “Desperate Landscapes,” both of which have season premieres later this month.

It’s adding more reality shows, including “Yard Crashers,” which helps people working in their yards, and “Indoors Out,” where homeowners get help building outdoor rooms.

The network’s upfront outlook
On a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being excellent: 4.

DIY will do well in the upfront ad market largely because it’s often packaged into media buys with HGTV and Food. But it also does well on its own in attracting home improvement advertisers, say media buyers, and it’ll get a boost from having ratings to show buyers.