Apple's Eddy Cue revealed why credit card charges feel random during a recent podcast appearance. The company batches transactions across 8-24 hours to avoid losing money on small purchases. When iTunes sold songs for $0.99, credit card fees consumed about a quarter of each sale, making individual transactions unprofitable.

Apple's solution keeps purchase transactions open temporarily, combining multiple charges before billing customers. This strategy still applies to App Store purchases and subscriptions today. The batching allows Apple to minimize credit card processing fees, though it creates confusion for users trying to reconcile their statements.

This approach explains why customers sometimes see unexpected charges on their credit cards. While Apple does send receipts, the timing difference between charges and receipts can make tracking difficult. The viral meme about Apple's "random" billing actually stems from a calculated business decision that prioritizes profit over transactional clarity.