"To add my $.02 into this converstion:

This may well work as an arranger, if eKo (or an adventurous user) is able to intergrate the arranger software with the sound engine - from the work of Frank Rosenthal, this looks like a doable task. However, what is also important is the ergonomics of the setup: for a live performance it is not enough to be able to navigate to the desired style using a touch screen or a pointing device - you have to have BUTTONS to make your selections. Providing a button surface and software which integrates it into the navigation scheme which may include a variety of audio, sequencing, and style-playing software components is a non-trivial exercise, and I don't know if it has ever been addressed in the PC environment (other than by Wersi)."

I know everyone means well be you REALLY have to look closer at the eKo concept: the keyboard allows you to pick and choose the kind of button/slider/control interface(s) that you prefer. It's fully customizable. There are interchangeable control "modules" or drop-in boxes that give you not only the controls you prefer but where you prefer them. So the ergonomic issue is fully addressed. The right button-interface should be programmable to emulate the kind of intro/verse/chorus/ending functions we all use with multiple variations of each... but that needs to go hand-in-hand with the right arranger software that exists only in theory at the moment.

It's my own personal theory that someone could or should produce a small powered speaker module option to give the eKo the kind of built-in amplification that many arranger users like for those who don't need four control surface modules. That's the kind of innovation that Open Labs is trying to get third-party vendors to offer I believe.