TV networks have waged several high-profile legal battles against services trying to stream their content over the Internet without a license. Mostly, the networks have succeeded: FilmOn and ivi TV were recent casualties.

But the networks have lost two major legal battles that open up a door for new, legal services: first the Cablevision case over the remote DVR, and just last week, the appeals court decision ruling that Aereo doesn't infringe copyright. Aereo has "hacked" copyright law by creating a service that uses thousands of tiny antennas, with one corresponding to each subscriber. By putting the subscriber in total control of what content gets redistributed, Aereo is in the clear. It charges subscribers $8 a month to watch New York broadcast TV over the Internet.

Judging from comments made today by the chief operations officer for News Corp., Chase Carey, the Aereo loss must really sting. Speaking at the National Association of Broadcasters in Las Vegas, Carey said the subscription revenue that his company, which owns Fox Broadcasting, gets from cable companies is absolutely vital. If it gets robbed of that cashflow because of the Aereo case, it might actually get out of the free-TV business.

"We simply cannot provide the type of quality sports, news, and entertainment content that we do from an ad-supported only business model," said Carey, according to a CNET report. "We have no choice but to develop business solutions that ensure we continue to remain in the driver's seat of our own destiny. One option could be converting the Fox broadcast network to a pay channel, which we would do in collaboration with both our content partners and affiliates."

He said the broadcaster-plaintiffs, which include ABC, CBS, and NBC as well as Fox, will continue to fight the Aereo case in court. The networks get paid by cable networks that carry their content over their wires, and they're arguing that Aereo shouldn't be allowed to start a TV-over-Internet business without their permission.

"Aereo is stealing our signal," he said. "We are going to pursue our legal rights. And we believe we will prevail."

The idea that Fox would actually get out of the broadcast TV business certainly seems like bluster rather than a real strategy. But Carey did promise a full-court press, suggesting that if network lawyers can't win the day, its lobbyists may start working overtime. "We will pursue our rights fully both legally and politically," he said.

Aereo responded with a statement pointing out that Fox seems to have forgotten the bargain it entered into when it decided to get into the TV broadcasting business to begin with—that over-the-air content will always remain free. "Having a television antenna is every American's right," an Aereo spokeswoman said in a statement.