CBS Television has rejected a Toronto-based gay dating site’s commercial that it had hoped would run during the Super Bowl.

In a letter to ManCrunch.com, CBS Standards and Practices said it had reviewed the proposed ad, which would cost an estimated $3 million to air, and “concluded that the creative is not within the Network’s Broadcast Standards for Super Bowl Sunday.”

In rejecting its bid for a commercial spot Kristen Bartlett, editor of CBS Program Practices, also said that CBS had difficulty verifying the company’s credit status.

CBS officials said should the dating Web site want to explore future buys, the credit issue would have to be clarified and that the “Standards and Practices Department would be open to working with you on acceptable creative and appropriate daypart scheduling.”

But early afternoon Friday ManCrunch.com got word that its 30-second ad was a rejected.

“It’s disappointing,” said Dominic Friesen, a spokesman for the dating site. “We perceived the spot to be quite harmless. We just think this is just another result of the discrimination that is part of Super Bowl advertising.”

The relatively new dating Web site launched in January, 2010. According to dating site officials in the days since the company’s Super Bowl pitch was reported, 32,000 men have signed up.

CBS insiders believed that the site was hoping to generate free publicity by producing a Super Bowl ad that it knew would be rejected and was unable to pay for.

But Friesen denied that. He says ManCrunch.com spent $100,000 on the proposed commercial, which is posted on both the Web site’s Web page and YouTube.

It shows two football fans watching a game on television and cheering. Then, as they both reach for a bowl of potato chips at the same time, their hands meet. After looking into each other’s eyes, the two embrace and kiss passionately. A third fan looks on and appears very shocked and surprised to see the lip lock.

“It’s certainly discrimination on the part of CBS,” said Friesen who rejects the television giant’s suggestion that the commercial was low on production values and that the company’s credit wasn’t verifiable.

“We’re a new company and don’t have a huge history. We offered to pay cash. We did have it earmarked for that spot.”

Friesen refused to identify who owns the dating site, saying it was a privately held company. He also said the company is making plans to try to get air time on another network. When asked whether they might try to advertise during the Olympics or perhaps in the Stanley Cup finals, Friesen wouldn’t say.

Originally ManCrunch.com hoped the Super Bowl would be a great launching vehicle to let the world know about its service. “We thought 90 million men watch the Super Bowl and we target men,” Friesen said in a telephone interview with the Star. “Why don’t we get the most bang for our buck?” he said.

The ManCrunch.com ad controversy comes on the heels of another commercial slated for the Super Bowl that has raised eyebrows for another reason. CBS has approved a pro-life commercial with Florida quarterback Tim Tebow. The commercial, funded by a Christian conservative group, is to be aired during the game.