I was around before gifs even existed. No one I knew ever pronounced it jif. It was always like gift. In fact, I never even heard any question of how it was pronounced well into the use of gifs.

Your 100% correct. I just point to early Fast and Furious movies.

If you just want to stream, you could always use real debrid (or similar sevice) and Kodi. It also offers downloads through its service as well if you ever need it.