diff --git a/libretro-common/net/net_http.c b/libretro-common/net/net_http.c
index a3dc3ce3d1..e34185954d 100644
--- a/libretro-common/net/net_http.c
+++ b/libretro-common/net/net_http.c
@@ -76,7 +76,8 @@ static int net_http_new_socket(const char *domain, int port)
    char portstr[16] = {0};
    
    /* Initialize the network. */
-   network_init();
+   if (!network_init())
+      return -1;
 
    snprintf(portstr, sizeof(portstr), "%i", port);