The New Millennium Research Council (NMRC), a Washington think tank, Thursday released results of a .

Thirty-nine percent of those customers with monthly contracts said they are likely to cut back. That percentage represents more than 60 million consumers who are expected to cut back on monthly service or extras such as texting, according to the Opinion Research Corp., a polling company that performed the survey for NMRC. The margin of error in the survey is plus or minus 2 percentage points.

Opinion Research, which conducts polls for CNN and other organizations, also found that many users have already cut back. "The change in thinking and purchases is clearly already taking place and has been for months," said Graham Hueber, senior researcher for Opinion Research, in a call with reporters.

Hueber said that 19% of those surveyed reported that they had discontinued cell phone service in the past six months because of , fear of job loss, the recession or other related financial concerns. He said that percentage represents 35 million Americans.

The findings suggest that a "recession-related shift in attitudes and purchasing habits is already under way," Hueber said.