Adweek has just released their Digital Hot List – a yearly list of top digital destinations for advertisers – and right up there with the big boys like Google, Facebook, and…Stardoll, is Microsoft’s Xbox Live service. Measuring statistics such as year over year growth, pages viewed per users, and time spent on pages, along with factors like ad innovation and cultural influence, Adweek has ranked Xbox Live as number 7 on its list, falling neatly between YouTube and The Huffington Post. Swelling from 6 million users to 12 million since the beginning of this year, it has landed sponsors including McDonald’s and Doritos, the latter encouraging users to create a game around the brand. Nintendo Wii has grabbed headlines, but in marketers’ battle for the living room, Xbox Live is the real game-changer selling downloads of premium programming while delivering a expanding roster of original, ad-supported content.

Well played, Xbox Live! Keep working on those advertising opportunities. Don’t rest until your entire service is skinned to look like a McGriddles ad. I kid, that’s a ridiculous idea.

Digital Hot List: Dynamite Destinations & Devices of ’08 [Adweek]