I also don't see HYIP investing as a scam, I see it as a means to earn some money.
That you don't see it as a scam doesn't mean it isn't.
Why do you think that websites like Cryptory and BTC-Arbs come up with elaborate back-stories and pretty websites? It's not to entertain the regulars from the HYIP community. It's to lure in unsuspecting people (and somewhat stupid, admittedly, but plenty of those around) by showing them something that looks like an investment. Because it's the losses of those people that feed the profits of the HYIP-regulars.
If, as you say, almost everyone already knows that a program is a HYIP, then why do the operators go through the effort and costs to set up elaborate websites, videos, etc... to make their operation look like a legitimate investment? Surely they could just make a basic website, slap on the text "HYIP: invest coins, get paid by future deposits, 1% per day".
HYIPs are not nice and cozy gatherings of community-regulars sending a few coins back and forth. They're scams designed to move coins from uninformed people to a smaller group that's "in the know".
