They must know that piracy will never end, especially torrents, which distributes the load of filesharing across the userbase. Somehow I don't think they're doing this to actually stop piracy. It must be to scare most people away from it, or something like that. Maybe they're hoping that by showing off like this, they'll draw piracy away from the mainstream? That might make most people less comfortable with doing it.
It's been like this for years now. You're exactly right; it's just like public hangings back in the 19th century and earlier - they're exemplary punishments, meant to scare everyone else straight. It must be to scare most people away from it, or something like that. Maybe they're hoping that by showing off like this, they'll draw piracy away from the mainstream? That might make most people less comfortable with doing it.