diff --git a/custom_components/emby_player/coordinator.py b/custom_components/emby_player/coordinator.py
index 6b190ad..1d825e5 100644
--- a/custom_components/emby_player/coordinator.py
+++ b/custom_components/emby_player/coordinator.py
@@ -161,16 +161,16 @@ class EmbyCoordinator(DataUpdateCoordinator[dict[str, EmbySession]]):
                 sessions = self._parse_sessions(data)
                 self.async_set_updated_data(sessions)
 
-        elif message_type in (
-            WS_MESSAGE_PLAYBACK_START,
-            WS_MESSAGE_PLAYBACK_STOP,
-            WS_MESSAGE_PLAYBACK_PROGRESS,
-        ):
-            # Individual session update - trigger a refresh to get full state
-            # We could optimize this by updating only the affected session,
-            # but a full refresh ensures consistency
+        elif message_type in (WS_MESSAGE_PLAYBACK_START, WS_MESSAGE_PLAYBACK_STOP):
+            # Playback started or stopped - refresh to get full state
             self.hass.async_create_task(self.async_request_refresh())
 
+        elif message_type == WS_MESSAGE_PLAYBACK_PROGRESS:
+            # Progress updates are frequent - don't trigger full refresh
+            # to avoid UI flicker. Regular polling will update position.
+            # We could extract position from the message here if needed.
+            pass
+
     async def _async_update_data(self) -> dict[str, EmbySession]:
         """Fetch sessions from Emby API (polling fallback)."""
         try:
diff --git a/custom_components/emby_player/media_player.py b/custom_components/emby_player/media_player.py
index 8907e5b..13f1fae 100644
--- a/custom_components/emby_player/media_player.py
+++ b/custom_components/emby_player/media_player.py
@@ -404,7 +404,8 @@ class EmbyMediaPlayer(CoordinatorEntity[EmbyCoordinator], MediaPlayerEntity):
             self._session_id,
             item_ids=[media_id],
         )
-        await self.coordinator.async_request_refresh()
+        # Don't refresh immediately - WebSocket will send PlaybackStart event,
+        # or polling will update state. Immediate refresh can close UI dialogs.
 
     async def async_browse_media(
         self,