I generally agree with this comparison. It's an unfortunate fact that most of our fantasy lit, while not conservative in any real-world-political way as any general rule, does veer into the heroes maintaining status quo against an overtly evil, clear bad guy. Sci-Fi is rarely so black and white, and though there may often be an antagonist, it can be a faceless megacorp, a cruel unfeeling society, or an imperialist alien force, as much as it could be a lone supervillain. When faced with these kinds of problems, the protagonists (maybe they're heroes, maybe they're not) are trying to undo the cruel, greedy, or uncaring status quo. Sci-Fi often starts in a relative dystopia, and the protagonist tries to push it towards a relative utopia. Fantasy starts in a relative utopia, and the heroes try to keep it that way in the face of some dark lord.

That said, I think this is too sweeping a generalization and, although it could be a fair guideline to understanding genres, I don't think it can be said that it is the difference between them. I really do enjoy fantasy. But I tend to enjoy fantasy with a rebellious nature. I can't point you to a lot of fantasy literature that fulfills this, but I can point you towards roleplaying in general and Dungeons & Dragons in particular, which are traditionally dominated by fantasy.

It might be my specific group of friends, or our interests, but 21st century players thrust into a medieval or Renaissance world let their modern colors fly loud and clear. They break the rules, they disrespect authority (ever have a player talk to a non-player King or other noble? They will make crude jabs, obscene gestures, and overt threats), and most importantly, they bring their sensibilities into it. They can dream of a spaceship. They will find the money, the resources, and the time, in-game, to produce things that no one in that world has dreamed up. They will find ways forward, they will break all the rules, and not just the rules of man - they will unseat gods and leave their holy thrones vacant, and they will bend reality to their whims - not unlike man bends nature to his with science. When magic is systemized into quantifiable abilities with real, known effects, it ceases to be "magic" in the traditional, mystic sense, but merely another tool, as sure as a plow, a sword, or a jet engine.

Is this the same as fantasy lit, or the mainstream market for fantasy entertainment? Nope, but I don't see how you could call an RPG world like D&D not fantasy without significantly altering the meaning of the terms and unseating a lot of the baggage associated with them. And if you can do it with a group of geeks around a table with dice, I think it's unfair to assume the genre can't make it happen in literature, or even in the movies.