A programmable and universal video platform enabling digital ads from ad sales teams, online digital exchanges, demand side platforms or other digital video advertising aggregators, to be inserted into linear television cable programming feeds. Content programmers distribute a programming schedule file for each linear programming feed. This data is then combined in the traffic and billing system with the advertising insertion orders from the various sales channels to create a local ad insertion schedule file. This schedule file includes a planned ad spot, but a time-based approach to ad insertion allows the schedule file to be modified such that the planned ad spot can be replaced with a replacement ad selected using the VAST digital ad selection protocol. Detection of the standard cue message in the programming feed triggers insertion of the replacement ad from the modified schedule file.